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American director Daniel McCabe and his team have opened up to Variety about the making of “Grasshopper Republic” at Swiss international documentary film fest Visions du Réel, where the pic is nominated in the main competition.

Based on a book of photographs by Michele Sibiloni, a photographer and long-time friend of McCabe, who co-shot the film with him and his brother Michael, “Grasshopper Republic” takes viewers on an immersive vérité style journey alongside Uganda’s grasshopper trappers as they set out to make the catch they hope will make them rich: prices and demand for grasshoppers are high in Uganda, where they are considered a delicacy.

The director was keen to emphasize the collaborative nature of the film, which was shot over three seasons in Uganda. Access to the trappers was made possible thanks to Sibiloni’s well established contacts with them.

“We really wanted to make something that was observational,...

Taskovski Films, the London-based world film sales company, has picked up “Grasshopper Republic,” which will have its world premiere in the International Competition at Visions du Réel documentary festival in Switzerland.

Filmed by Daniel McCabe over the course of three seasons in Uganda, “Grasshopper Republic” follows a grasshopper trapping team in verité style as these modern-day prospectors push into remote forests seeking their fortune by capturing this elusive prey.

We witness massive generators being hauled up collapsing mudbanks. Light posts are erected with chemically treated bulbs, casting a lurid neon green pall over the tree canopy, irresistibly attracting the swarm to their corrugated iron traps.

The trappers, who have suffered through injury, sickness and exhaustion, finally have their moment and relief washes over them. As for the grasshoppers who have been lured into a trap through unnatural trickery, their path ends in a frying pan.

McCabe says: “ ‘Grasshopper Republic’ is...

CNN Worldwide has tapped Otto Bell to oversee its creative marketing department.

Bell will be senior vice president and chief creative officer, and will report to Kristine Coratti Kelly, the executive vice president and head of global communications. He’ll oversee on-air and off-channel brand and marketing for all CNN Worldwide businesses.

Bell is the founder and chief creative officer of Courageous, the commercial brand studio for CNN. He worked with CNN teams on hundreds of campaigns for hundreds of advertisers.

Before his work at Courageous, Bell helped launch and lead Oglivy’s entertainment practice, where he developed new media models and produced brand-funded television series. Partners included BBC World News, CNBC, Nat Geo and Discovery. He previously worked in brand positioning, brand planning and copywriting over three years in London, Paris and Shanghai as part of Wpp’s “Fellowship” program.

Bell also is a documentary director and producer. His feature debut,...

Nicolas Peduzzi’s Houston-set documentary Ghost Song opened parallel Cannes section Acid in 2021.

Vice World News has acquired world rights for French director Nicolas Peduzzi’s documentary Ghost Song, which opened parallel Cannes section Acid in 2021.

Filmed in Houston, Texas, as a hurricane approaches, the feature documentary follows three separate characters, including rapper Omb Bloodbath, who was a close friend of George Floyd having been mentored by him as a young adult.

After its Acid debut, it went on to win the best film prize in the Permanent Revolutions section of the Seville Film Festival last November.

Vice World News...

Radiation exposure was at the forefront of cinematographer Simon Niblett’s mind as he spent time filming Otto Bell’s “The Toxic Pigs of Fukushima.” Bell, who was trying for a baby at the time, was also concerned – they carried radiation monitors.

Bell’s documentary Oscar contender, “The Toxic Pigs of Fukushima,” follows a group of local hunters who have been enlisted to dispose of radiated wild boars that now roam the abandoned streets and buildings of Fukushima, Japan after a 2011 earthquake caused a nuclear meltdown.

Below, Bell and Niblett spoke with Variety about filming and how drone technology helped them find and film the wild boars.

Tell me about your pre-production planning and any discussions you two had going into this shoot. What mood, styles and themes did you discuss capturing?

Bell: I kept Simon in the dark a bit in the run-up to the shoot. That’s not best practice,...

Vice is launching its own online documentary film festival with 11 feature-docs curated by the company’s co-founder Suroosh Alvi.

The youth-skewing media company is launching a site to house the films, which includes a number of Oscar contenders, with each film featuring a Q&a with Alvi and the filmmakers and subjects.

The films are The Toxic Pigs of Fukushima, Showgirls of Pakistan, We Hold the Line, Sakawa, Another Kind of Paradise, Dope Is Death, Mayor, The Donut King, Yung Lean – In My Head, Two Gods and The Prophet and the Space Aliens (full details below).

The collection will be preceded by a linear airing of The Toxic Pigs of Fukushima, which will air today, January 31 at 6:30am Pt, on Vice TV, with the site going live at 8am Pt.

The Short List With Suroosh Alvi is produced by Vice World News and distributed worldwide by Vice Distribution. Executive...

Exclusive: Vice has picked up all rights to Valparaiso Pictures’ documentary The Toxic Pigs of Fukushima by The Eagle Huntress filmmaker Otto Bell.

The film charts the aftermath of the Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011 which triggered a tsunami, nuclear disaster and mass evacuations in Fukushima Prefecture. Today, as part of a government push to encourage resettlement, local hunters have been enlisted to dispose of radiated wild boars that now roam the abandoned streets and buildings.

The film was inspired by the photographs of co-producers Toru Hanai and Yuki Iwanami and the original score was written and performed by ambient artist Midori Takada.

The deal was negotiated by Jason Guberman, Chris Andaya, Maral Usefi and Zara Meerza for Vice. CAA Media Finance, which arranged financing for the film, brokered the deal with Marc Simon of Fox Rothschild on behalf of the filmmakers.

Bell, whose Daisy Ridley-narrated doc The Eagle Huntress...

There will be no Telluride Film Festival this Labor Day in Colorado, but the programmers have unveiled what this year’s selections would have been. Much like the Cannes Film Festival’s 2020 lineup, this year’s Telluride films can at least carry the imprimatur of the festival as we head into the fall circuit. The 47th edition of the Telluride Film Festival was scheduled for September 3-7. See the full lineup, as revealed on Monday, below.

The idea in presenting the Telluride selections is to recommend the best in film this year in hopes that audiences will seek out these movies at other fall festivals (or what remains of them) down the line. With the 2021 Academy Awards pushed way out to April 25, there’s at once less pressure on these films to perform for awards but also a crush of movies backlogged since quarantine hit, making for a competitive season.

Altitude Media Group has launched new division Altitude Factual to create long-running TV series and feature-length documentaries focusing on the natural and human worlds with strong family appeal.

Natural history and factual programming executive Paul Sowerbutts will head the new unit. Sowerbutts, the former head of Channel 4 International and Diverse Productions, has overseen such projects as “Touching the Void” and “Bear Grylls – Man vs Wild.” He is also currently executive producing Otto Bell’s forthcoming feature “The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu.”

Jeremy Bradshaw, founder of Tigress Prods., joins Altitude Factual as head of natural history. Bradshaw’s credits include “In the Wild” and “Saving Planet Earth.”

The launch of Altitude Factual follows 30West’s investment in Altitude Media Group and the studio’s production partnership with L.A.-based Soluble Fish Prods.

Off the back of a number of successful U.K. and Irish live events, Altitude is expanding its event cinema operations internationally,...

New arm to be led by Paul Sowerbutts.

The UK’s Altitude Media Group has launched a new division to produce natural history and documentary series and features, led by former Diverse Productions chief Paul Sowerbutts.

Altitude Factual will create long-running television series and feature-length documentaries focusing on the natural and human worlds with strong family appeal.

The London-based independent production, international sales and distribution company has previously been involved with award-winning documentaries including Amy, Whitney, Diego Maradona, My Scientology Movie and Liam Gallagher: As It Was.

Sowerbutts will lead the division as managing director. He was previously managing director of Channel 4 Rights,...

Eugene Jarecki – two times winner of the Sundance Grand Jury Prize – for “Why We Fight” (2005) and “The House I Live In” (2012) – is preparing an untitled “Tuareg Project,” that he will shoot in Morocco.

The pic will be produced by Addison O’Dea (“Discovery Trvlr”), and line produced by Moroccan producer Zakaria Alaoui, of Zak Productions.

The project marks a return for Jarecki to fiction after focusing in recent years on documentaries, including his recent Elvis Presley-themed musical road trip “The King” (2017), featuring celebrity guests such as Alec Baldwin, Ethan Hawke, Lana del Rey, and Jane Fonda, which premiered at Sundance and made its international debut in Cannes.

Jarecki has written the script with his son, Jonas, based on a bestselling novel.

One of his main concerns is to avoid a post-colonial Western gaze on the subject and considers that his extensive experience in anthropological documentary filmmaking will help him achieve authenticity.

Just when the year starts to wind down, the Sundance lineup arrives to remind us of all the new movies right around the corner. But wait! Before you shout “Already?!” and hide under your desk, we’re not quite there yet: The festival drops the program for its 2020 edition after Thanksgiving weekend, which means there are still a few weeks left to enjoy the current movie season before sifting through a whole new set of options.

At IndieWire, however, we simply can’t wait that long. Over the past several months, we’ve been tracking projects in various states of production and post-production as filmmakers rush to submit their rough cuts to the festival in the hopes of making a splash at Park City in January. Our Sundance wish list contains movies that we’re excited to see, but if our research tells us that an upcoming release simply won’t be ready in time,...

Exclusive: Valparaiso Pictures has wrapped shooting on documentary The Toxic Pigs of Fukushima, directed by BAFTA nominee Otto Bell (The Eagle Huntress), with Emmy winner Joe Bini (You Were Never Really Here) on board to edit.

The 40-minute doc charts the destruction wrought by the Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011 which triggered a tsunami, nuclear meltdown and mass evacuations. Through the central metaphor of radiated wild boars that now roam the region, Bell and longtime collaborator, cinematographer Simon Niblett, follow the everyday lives of a handful of citizens still struggling to make a life in the much-changed landscape.

Above we can reveal the first-look image from the film.

Los Anglees-based production firm Valparaiso fully financed with David Carrico and Adam Paulsen for Valparaiso and Bell’s Kissaki Films producing. CAA Media Finance is handling sales.

The film was in part inspired by the photographs of Toru Hanai and Yuki Iwanami,...

Exclusive: New York Times bestseller The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu is getting a documentary adaptation with director Otto Bell (The Eagle Huntress) and producers Argent Pictures (Chasing Coral), Idil Ibrahim (Fishing Without Nets) and fledgling UK outfit Cove Pictures.

Written by Joshua Hammer, the book, released in April 2017, follows the true story of a group of librarians who undertook a daring cultural evacuation to save ancient texts from Al Qaeda.

The documentary, which due to security concerns has been shot secretly over more than a year in Mali, Africa, focuses on the 300 days of jihadi occupation – from April 2012 to January 2013 – when the infamous Saharan city fell under Al Qaeda’s control. It hones in on a small group of scholars, led by Abdel Kader Haidara, who fearing for the future of their precious manuscripts, transformed themselves into a gang of world-class smugglers. Amid life-and-death stakes, they sneak thousands of books...

With technology evolving at warp speed, how will nonfiction storytelling be affected and what opportunities will be born as a result? That was the question addressed at the CNN Sundance panel Documentary Filmmaking in the Digital Age.

The Hollywood Reporter editor Matthew Belloni led a discussion with panelists Maria Bello, director Garrett Bradley, Great Big Story executive producer Courtney Coupe and The Eagle Huntress director and producer Otto Bell on how everything from virtual reality to ubiquitous short-form documentary platforms is enhancing the ability to tell compelling true stories.

Bello, who created The Sun Ladies Vr Experience, which is making...

The Eagle Huntress Sony Pictures Classics Director: Otto Bell Written by: Otto Bell Cast: Aisholpan Nurgaiv, Rhys Nurgaiv, Kuksyegyen Almagul, Boshai Dalaikhan Screened at: Sony, NYC, 11/30/16 Opens: November 2, 2016 One of the most popular TV game shows ever was “What’s My Line,” which ran from 1950 to 1967 and was parodied by Woody […]

The post The Eagle Huntress Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.

La La Land wins top prize at the ceremony.

La La Land was the big winner at the 2017 Baftas, winning five prizes, including best film, best director (Damien Chazelle) and best actress (Emma Stone).

Casey Affleck won leading actor for Manchester by the Sea, with Dev Patel (Lion) and Viola Davis (Fences) winning supporting actor and actress.

I, Daniel Blake won outstanding British film.

The 2017 Baftas took place on Feb 12 at the Royal Albert Hall and were once again hosted once again by Stephen Fry.

Read: Eight talking points ahead of the BaftasThe full list of winners

Winners in bold.

Best Filmarrival Dan Levine, Shawn Levy, David Linde, Aaron RyderI, Daniel Blake Rebecca O’BrienLA La Land Fred Berger, Jordan Horowitz, Marc PlattMANCHESTER By The Sea Lauren Beck, Matt Damon, Chris Moore, Kimberly Steward, Kevin J. WalshMOONLIGHT Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Adele RomanskiLEADING Actressamy Adams ArrivalEMILY Blunt The Girl on the TrainEMMA Stone La La LandMERYL Streep...

La La Land, Arrival, Nocturnal Animals and I, Daniel Blake among films competing for Bafta glory.

The 2017 Baftas take place on Feb 12 at the Royal Albert Hall and are hosted once again by Stephen Fry.

The show is broadcast on BBC One on a time delay, but Screen will be following the action as it happens from around 6:45Gmt and updating the winners as they are announced, below.

Read: Eight talking points ahead of the BaftasThe nominations

Winners in bold.

Leading Actorandrew Garfield Hacksaw RidgeCASEY Affleck Manchester by the SeaJAKE Gyllenhaal Nocturnal AnimalsRYAN Gosling La La LandVIGGO Mortensen Captain FantasticCINEMATOGRAPHYARRIVAL Bradford YoungHELL Or High Water Giles NuttgensLA La Land Linus SandgrenLION Greig FraserNOCTURNAL Animals Seamus McGarveyORIGINAL Screenplayhell Or High Water Taylor SheridanI, Daniel Blake Paul LavertyLA La Land Damien ChazelleMANCHESTER By The Sea Kenneth LonerganMOONLIGHT Barry JenkinsOutstanding British contribution to cinemaCURZON Cinemassupporting Actoraaron Taylor-johnson Nocturnal AnimalsDEV Patel LionHUGH Grant Florence Foster JenkinsJEFF Bridges Hell or High...

With a seemingly endless amount of streaming options — not only the titles at our disposal, but services themselves — we’ve taken it upon ourselves to highlight the titles that have recently hit platforms. Every week, one will be able to see the cream of the crop (or perhaps some simply interesting picks) of streaming titles (new and old) across platforms such as Netflix, iTunes, Amazon, and more (note: U.S. only). Check out our rundown for this week’s selections below.

Crimson Peak (Guillermo del Toro)

Crimson Peak works as many things: a melodramatic romance; both the recreation of a period and a revival of the way movies have made us perceive it; a genre-jumping comedy; and a critique of capitalistic excess. It does these things earnestly and without compromise, and it’s far braver — far more admirable — for having done so. What Guillermo del Toro’s new film doesn...

Editor’s Note: Click here for more information about the indie films available from Movies on Demand.

It can be hard to find a good documentary to watch with the whole family. Oscar contenders like “13th,” “I Am Not Your Negro” and “Oj: Made in America” are essential viewing, but they’re not necessarily the best fit for young children. That’s where “The Eagle Huntress” comes in, Otto Bell’s inspirational and rousing documentary about a young girl who does whatever it takes to make dream come true.

“The Eagle Huntress” follows 13-year-old Aisholpan, a Kazakh kid with one main aspiration — to be an eagle huntress. It may sound like a simple enough request, but Aisholpan’s big dream (alongside another desire to become a doctor) isn’t a common one. In fact, she’d be the very first of her kind, at least in her eagle-hunting-crazed region.

Read...

Out of a stellar crop of documentaries to have emerged in 2016, one – from a first time filmmaker – stood out more than most, not just for its astonishing visuals, but because of the hugely ambitious nature of the project.

In The Eagle Huntress, U.S.-based British director Otto Bell tells the remarkable story of Aisholpan, a 13-year-old nomadic Kazakh girl from Mongolia – “the most remote part of the least populated country in the world” – as she trains to become the first female eagle hunter, following in the footsteps of her family while also battling a society where...

The Eagle Huntress is a brilliant fusion of Pixar’s Brave and Dreamworks’ How to Train Your Dragon. Except it’s all real. This is a tale of a young girl battling against sexist tribal elders to become the first eagle huntress; besting her rivals, proving herself against the elements and battling against the odds.

The raw material of isolated Mongolian eagle hunters makes for a potent cinematic cocktail: not just authentic and uplifting, but inherently visually exciting. It’s perhaps no wonder that Ice Age director Chris Wedge has signed on to direct an all-star animated adaptation of the same story.

With its subject’s snowballing fame (and high hopes for the film in awards season), its humble origins are increasingly faintly surreal. It began with photographer Asher Svidensky heading to Mongolia to document the lives of Kazakh eagle hunters, a trip which produced a striking picture of a...

Awards season keeps ticking right along, but tonight’s Cinema Eye Honors promised at least a tiny respite from narrative-based filmmaking, as the New York City-set ceremony is all about honoring the best in the year’s documentary filmmaking.

Big winners included Kirsten Johnson’s “Cameraperson,” which picked up Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Feature Filmmaking, along with editing and cinematography wins. Right behind it was Ezra Edelman’s “O.J.: Made in America,” which earned Edelman a directing win, along with a production win for Edelman and Caroline Waterlow. Best TV offering went to “Making a Murderer.”

Nominations were lead by Raoul Peck’s “I Am Not Your Negro” and “O.J.: Made in America,” which each pulled in five nominations apiece, though Johnson’s “Cameraperson” and Gianfranco Rosi’s “Fire at Sea” aren’t far behind, with four nominations each. Both Peck and Rosi’s features ultimately walked away without an award.

The Directors Guild Of America on Wednesday unveiled nominees in the documentary, television and commercials categories.

The winners will be announced at the 69th Annual DGA Awards on February 4 in Beverly Hills.

Documentary

Otto Bell, The Eagle Huntress

Ezra Edelman, O.J.: Made in America

Josh Kriegman and Elyse Steinberg, Weiner

Raoul Peck, I Am Not Your Negro

Roger Ross Williams, Life, Animated

Dramatic Series

The Duffer Brothers, Stranger Things, “Chapter One: The Vanishing of Will Byers”

Ryan Murphy, The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story, “From The Ashes Of Tragedy”

Jonathan Nolan, Westworld, “The Original”

Miguel Sapochnik, Game Of Thrones, “The Battle Of The Bastards”

John Singleton, The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story, “The Race Card”

Comedy Series

Alec Berg, Silicon Valley, “Daily Active Users”

Donald Glover, Atlanta, “B.A.N.”

Mike Judge, Silicon Valley, “Founder Friendly”

Becky Martin, Veep, “Inauguration”

Dale Stern, Veep, “Mother”

Movies For Television And Mini-series

Raymond De Felitta, [link...

The five nominees for the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary for 2016 are all on the Oscar shortlist of 15.

Getting a boost as Oscar documentary branch voters fill out their ballots this week are six first-time nominees:

Otto Bell “The Eagle Huntress” (Sony Pictures Classics)

Ezra Edelman “O.J.: Made in America” (Espn Films)

John Kriegman & Elyse Steinberg “Weiner” (Sundance Selects)

Raoul Peck “I Am Not Your Negro” (Magnolia Pictures)

Roger Ross Williams “Life, Animated” (The Orchard)

Overlapping with the PGA’s nominated documentaries are “Life, Animated,” “O.J.: Made in America,” and “The Eagle Huntress,” the last of which also landed a BAFTA nod, along with “13th” and “Weiner.”

Related stories'a Man Called Ove' Co-Star Bahar Pars May Not Be Allowed to Attend the Oscars Due to Muslim BanSanta Barbara Film Festival: Oscar Contenders Pack Writer and Producer Panels'La La Land': How Damien Chazelle...

The five nominees for the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary for 2016 are all on the Oscar shortlist of 15.

Getting a boost as Oscar documentary branch voters fill out their ballots this week are six first-time nominees:

Otto Bell “The Eagle Huntress” (Sony Pictures Classics)

Ezra Edelman “O.J.: Made in America” (Espn Films)

John Kriegman & Elyse Steinberg “Weiner” (Sundance Selects)

Raoul Peck “I Am Not Your Negro” (Magnolia Pictures)

Roger Ross Williams “Life, Animated” (The Orchard)

Overlapping with the PGA’s nominated documentaries are “Life, Animated,” “O.J.: Made in America,” and “The Eagle Huntress,” the last of which also landed a BAFTA nod, along with “13th” and “Weiner.”

Related storiesCinematographers Guild Nominates Oscar Frontrunners 'La La Land,' 'Moonlight'2016 Directors Guild of America Documentary and TV Nominations: The Year of O.J. ContinuesDenzel Washington Interview: The Director Reveals How He Opened Up 'Fences'...

And they are: The Eagle Huntress Oj Made in America Weiner I am Not Your Negro Life, Animated Documentary The nominees for the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding...

The Directors Guild of America has announced the nominees in the documentary and television categories for this year’s DGA Awards, with O.J. Simpson present in both fields: “O.J.: Made in America” and “The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story” both picked up nods. Other contenders include “Atlanta,” “Westworld” and “The Eagle Huntress.” The feature film nominees, meanwhile, are scheduled to be announced tomorrow.

This year’s ceremony takes place on February 4 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. Full list of nominees below:

Read More: 2016 Producers Guild Awards TV Nominations: ‘Game of Thrones,’ ‘Atlanta’ and ‘Westworld’ All Land Nods

Dramatic Series

The Duffer Brothers, “Stranger Things,” “Chapter One: The Vanishing of Will Byers”

Ryan Murphy, “The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story,” “From the Ashes of Tragedy”

Jonathan Nolan, “Westworld,” “The Original”

Miguel Sapochnik, “Game of Thrones,” “The Battle of the Bastards”

John Singleton, “The People v.

© 2015 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation..

The Producers Guild of America (PGA) announced today the motion picture nominations for the 28th Annual Producers Guild Awards. The categories are The Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures and The Award for Outstanding Producer of Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures.

All 2017 Producers Guild Award winners will be announced on Saturday, January 28, 2017 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles. This year, the Producers Guild will present special honors to Tom Rothman (Milestone Award), James L. Brooks (Norman Lear Achievement Award in Television), Irwin Winkler (David O. Selznick Achievement Award in Theatrical Motion Pictures), the feature film Loving (Stanley Kramer Award), and Megan Ellison (Visionary Award).

The 2017 Producers Guild Awards Co-Chairs are Donald De Line and Amy Pascal. Sponsors of this year’s event include: Buick, Official Automotive Partner of the Awards, Delta Air Lines, Official Airline Partner of the PGA...

A version of this article originally appeared on ew.com.

La La Land and Moonlight take one step closer to clinching best picture nominations at the Academy Awards as the Producers Guild of America — one of the most influential guilds in the entertainment industry — announces its annual slate of award nominees.

The 7,500-strong union, comprised of producing teams in film, television, and new media, revealed its crop of honorees on Tuesday, firming up best picture frontrunner La La Land‘s bid for further awards season domination after the Damien Chazelle-directed musical became the most decorated film in Golden Globes history Sunday night.

Fox’s superhero adaptation has earned a theatrical nomination from the Producers Guild Of America, which traditionally serves as a strong form guide for Oscar best picture nominees.

The Guild unveiled its ten nominees on Tuesday for the Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures.

While there was no mention of Paramount’s Silence, Focus Features’ Nocturnal Animals and Loving, or Warner Bros’ Sully. CBS Films’ Hell Or High Water made it on to the list, as did Fox’s Hidden Figures.

Nominees includes the expected awards season heavyweights Moonlight, Manchester By The Sea, Arrival, Fences and La La Land, which won seven Golden Globes on Sunday and just earned 11 BAFTA nods.

The animation nominees are: Golden Globe winner Zootopia, Kubo And The Two Strings, The Secret Life Of Pets, Finding Dory and Moana.

All 2017 Producers Guild Award winners will be announced on January 28 at the Guild’s awards show in Beverly Hills.

This...

Fox’s superhero adaptation has earned a theatrical nomination from the Producers Guild Of America, which traditionally serves as a strong form guide for Oscar best picture nominees.

The Guild unveiled its ten nominees on Tuesday for the Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures.

While there was no mention of Paramount’s Silence or Focus Features’ Nocturnal Animals and Loving, CBS Films’ Hell Or High Water made it on to the list.

Nominees includes the expected awards season heavyweights Moonlight, Manchester By The Sea, Arrival, Fences, Hidden Figures and La La Land, which won seven Golden Globes on Sunday and just earned 11 BAFTA nods.

The animation nominees are: Golden Globe winner Zootopia, Kubo And The Two Strings, The Secret Life Of Pets, Finding Dory and Moana.

All 2017 Producers Guild Award winners will be announced on January 28 at the Guild’s awards show in Beverly Hills.

This year, the...

Sophie Turner and Dominic Cooper presented this year’s nominations.Baftas 2017‘La La Land’ leads the way with 11 nominationsBaftas 2017: nominees’ reactionsBaftas 2017: eOne and Lionsgate score record number of nominationsBaftas 2017 analysis: ‘La La Land’ soars, diversity debate simmers

Bafta chair Jane Lush was joined by Sophie Turner and Dominic Cooper to announce the nominations for the Ee British Academy Film Awards in London on January 10 2017.

The awards will take place on Feb 12 at the Royal Albert Hall and will be hosted once again by Stephen Fry. The show will be broadcast on BBC One.

2017 nominationsBEST Filmarrival Dan Levine, Shawn Levy, David Linde, Aaron RyderI, Daniel Blake Rebecca O’BrienLA La Land Fred Berger, Jordan Horowitz, Marc PlattMANCHESTER By The Sea Lauren Beck, Matt Damon, Chris Moore, Kimberly Steward, Kevin J. WalshMOONLIGHT Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Adele RomanskiOUTSTANDING British Filmamerican Honey Andrea Arnold, Lars Knudsen, Pouya Shahbazian, Jay Van HoyDENIAL Mick Jackson, Gary Foster, [link...

The struggle for racial equality in America, the careers of cinematographers, directors, and photographers, the immigration crisis, music as celebration and grief, and strange conspiracies — these were just a few of the places and stories that this year’s documentary offerings brought us. With 2016 wrapping up, we’ve selected 20 features in the field that most impressed, so check out our list below and, in the comments, let us know your favorites.

13th (Ava DuVernay)

Following the stunning Selma, which conveyed a present-tense urgency sorely lacking in many biopics and radically distributed screen-time away from Dr. King to communicate the collectivity inherent to any reform movement, Ava DuVernay has shifted her rhetorical approach, but her anger remains. Whereas Selma was emotive and explosive, 13th is lucid and level-headed, gradually and methodically making a case that black incarceration is actually just a reconfigured and rebranded form of slavery. Sticking to conventional but...

Find out what made our top 10 films of 2016 - and which films feature on Team Screen’s overall top 10.Scroll down for Screen’s overall top 10

Screen’s esteemed critics have had their turn. Now, Screen staff, contributors and correspondents reveal their favourite films seen in 2016. Festival premieres and UK/Us theatrical releases are deemed eligible.

Matt Mueller (editor)

Moonlight (dir. Barry Jenkins)La La Land (dir. Damien Chazelle)Aquarius (dir. Kleber Mendonça Filho)Mustang (dir. Deniz Gamze Ergüven)Hell Or High Water (dir. David Mackenzie)Embrace Of The Serpent (dir. Ciro Guerra)Little Men (dir. Ira Sachs)Suntan (dir. Argyris Papadimitropoulos)Love & Friendship (dir. Whit Stillman)Nocturnal Animals (dir Tom Ford)Jeremy Kay (Us editor)

Manchester By The Sea (dir. Kenneth Lonergan)Neruda (dir. Pablo Larrain)Aquarius (dir. Kleber Mendonça Filho)Deadpool (dir Tim Miller)Fire At Sea (dir. Gianfranco Rosi)Moonlight (dir. Barry Jenkins)Oj: Made In America (dir. Ezra Edelman)[link=tt...

Otto Bell: 'The talons have go 900psi of pressure per square inch, they're the size of a kiddie's fingers. They're killing machines. But you just forget about it' Otto Bell's The Eagle Huntress shows how one girl's ambition takes flight with the golden eagle she raises in a community that has only ever seen men hunt with the animals. It's a story as much about a dad's faith in his daughter, Aisholpan, as her faith in her ability to train a bird and one which has already soared past $1.4million at the Us box office in just five weeks and is set for an animated version by Ice Age director Chris Wedge in the near future.

Otto Bell: 'She was a young woman who was really determined and worked hard to achieve what she believed in. To see kids cheering for that is a good feeling.'...

Otto Bell’s documentary mixes the traditional and modern to thrilling effect

Related: The Eagle Huntress review – Kazakh falconry was never so family-friendly

At first glance, Otto Bell’s The Eagle Huntress looks like one of those archetypal ethnographic documentaries with which Robert Flaherty kicked off the whole history of documentary film-making a century ago. Just like in 1922’s Nanook Of The North, Bell tackles a vanishing way of life – an ancient people in a harsh, unforgiving climate – and one might be forgiven for thinking it celebrates a wilful anachronism as it slides over history’s horizon. But you’d be wrong: there is enough of the new and the now to make this enthralling viewing.

Continue reading...

Otto Bell had never made a feature film. But when he saw this photo, he flew to Mongolia – and followed one girl’s struggle to capture and tame a golden eagle. The result is a breathtaking Oscar contender

Otto Bell was surfing the web at work when he saw the photographs that enticed him to sink his life savings into his first feature film. On his screen was a rosy-cheeked, Mongolian girl. Perched on a mountain ridge, she was smiling with delight at a ferocious golden eagle flapping on her arm.

The scene was a world away from the office cubicle in New York where Bell was sitting. The shots were taken in the Altai mountains which, Bell points out, “is the most remote part of the least-populated country in the world”. The 35-year-old had no financing and had only ever made short, commercially funded documentaries. Yet in a “pretty...

It’s said that Daisy Ridley was so enamoured by the story of Aisholpan, that she herself sought out a means of getting involved in the telling this tale, attached now as both narrator and executive producer. It doesn’t take long into Otto Bell’s moving documentary to see why she felt this way, for this […]

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The Salesman, The Eagle Huntress and Hunt For The Wilderpeople take top prizes, while Meg Ryan accepts honorary award.

Iranian director Asghar Farhadi’s The Salesman, UK film-maker Otto Bell’s The Eagle Huntress and Hunt For The Wilderpeople, by New Zealand’s Taika Waititi, have won the top prizes at the Doha Film Institute’s fourth Ajyal Youth Film Festival (Nov 29-Dec 5).

A total of 38 features from around the world screened at Ajyal this year.

Waititi’s tale of the relationship between a mixed up teenager and a reluctant foster parent won the top prize of the Mohaq jury made up of children aged eight to 12-years-old.

The Hilal jury, for the 13 to 17-year-old category, awarded The Eagle Huntress, about a young Mongolian girl’s quest to become the first female eagle huntress of her semi-nomadic tribe. The win coincides with the documentary’s inclusion on the 15-title Oscar documentary shortlist on Tuesday.

The Bader jury...

Yesterday, the Academy announced one of their long lists, whittling down the Best Animated Feature contenders to just 15 finalists. They went from an initial listing of 145 titles, making this comparatively a very short list. It consists of all of the year’s big contenders, as you’ll see shortly, but it also has relatively few snubs. I’ll get into that momentarily, but that’s a nice change of pace. This is always somewhat of a crapshoot, category wise, so knowing there’s a ton of quality here is never a bad thing at all. Anyway, this is more information to take into account when doing your Oscar predictions. The puzzle is slowly coming together, ladies and gentlemen! Nothing too unexpected was left off this list, though Leonardo Dicaprio and Fisher Stevens’ Before the Flood, Werner Herzog’s Into the Inferno, Ron Howard’s The Beatles: Eight Days a Week – The Touring Years,...

The Ivory Game directors Kief Davidson and Richard Ladkani Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze

Kirsten Johnson's Cameraperson; Robert Kenner's Command And Control; Otto Bell's The Eagle Huntress; Gianfranco Rosi's Fire At Sea (Fuocoammare); Clay Tweel's Gleason; Nanfu Wang's Hooligan Sparrow; Raoul Peck's I Am Not Your Negro; Kief Davidson and Richard Ladkani's The Ivory Game; Roger Ross Williams's Life, Animated; Ezra Edelman's O.J.: Made In America; Ava DuVernay's 13th; Keith Maitland's Tower; Elyse Steinberg and Josh Kriegman's Weiner; James D Solomon's The Witness and Alex Gibney's Zero Days are a step closer to garnering a Best Documentary Oscar nomination.

Directors Raoul Peck, I Am Not Your Negro and Ezra Edelman, O.J.: Made in America Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' Documentary Branch determined the shortlist in a preliminary round of voting on the 145 submitted titles.

The Academy documentary branch’s shortlist of 15 represents a diverse range of films from all over the world, representing strong political views as well as high artistry. However, this year also stands as the first HBO shutout in recent memory — perhaps because they didn’t campaign assertively.

Rivals PBS landed five, Independent Lens and Showtime three, Netflix two, and American Experience Films, Pov, A&E, Amazon Studios, and Espn each have one. Theatrical distributors Kino Lorber and Magnolia had two, with Sundance Selects, Sony Pictures Classics, Open Road, Janus Films, Film Rise, The Film Collaborative and The Orchard one.

But which will make the final five? Those screeners will eventually be sent to the entire Academy — who have more mainstream taste than this group of professional documentarians. For now, this more demanding group will winnow down the list.

Films on similar topics could knock each other out. For example, voters...

The Academy documentary branch’s shortlist of 15 represents a diverse range of films from all over the world, representing strong political views as well as high artistry. However, this year also stands as the first HBO shutout in recent memory — perhaps because they didn’t campaign assertively.

Rivals PBS landed five, Independent Lens and Showtime three, Netflix two, and American Experience Films, Pov, A&E, Amazon Studios, and Espn each have one. Theatrical distributors Kino Lorber and Magnolia had two, with Sundance Selects, Sony Pictures Classics, Open Road, Janus Films, Film Rise, The Film Collaborative and The Orchard one.

PBS films — 3 are Independent Lens (Tower, I Am Not Your Negro and The Witness), one is Pov (Cameraperson) and one is American Experience (Command And Control.)

best,

Mary Lugo

But which will make the final five? Those screeners will eventually be sent to the entire Academy — who have more mainstream taste...

I, Daniel Blake, The Salesman, Under the Shadow and Fire at Sea will also screen at youth-focused festival.

The fourth edition of the Doha Film Institute’s Ajyal Youth Film Festival (Nov 30-Dec 5) kicks off this week with the Mena debut and gala screening of UK director Otto Bell’s Mongolia-set documentary The Eagle Huntress (pictured).

The father and daughter tale about a young girl who defies social convention and the elements of Mongolia’s Altai Mountains to become her community’s first female eagle hunting champion premiered at Sundance earlier this year.

It is among a number of Academy Award hopefuls screening at the youth-focused event alongside Under The Shadow, The Salesman, The Idol and Fire At Sea.

Festival director and CEO of the Doha Film Institute Fatma Al Remaihi said the tale of female empowerment at the heart of The Eagle Huntress chimed with Ajyal’s focus on “positive social change” this edition.

“We’re delighted...

I, Daniel Blake, The Salesman, Under the Shadow and Fire at Sea will also screen at youth-focused festival.

The fourth edition of the Doha Film Institute’s Ajyal Youth Film Festival (Nov 30-Dec 5) kicks off this week with the Mena debut and gala screening of UK director Otto Bell’s Mongolia-set documentary The Eagle Huntress (pictured).

The father and daughter tale about a young girl who defies social convention and the elements of Mongolia’s Altai Mountains to become her community’s first female eagle hunting champion premiered at Sundance earlier this year.

It is among a number of Academy Award hopefuls screening at the youth-focused event alongside Under The Shadow, The Salesman, The Idol and Fire At Sea.

Festival director and CEO of the Doha Film Institute Fatma Al Remaihi said the tale of female empowerment at the heart of The Eagle Huntress chimed with Ajyal’s focus on “positive social change” this edition.

“We’re delighted...

Unsurprising surprises dominated this morning’s Producers Guild of America documentary nominees. While the PGA’s feature nominees often align with Oscar contenders, that’s often untrue for the documentaries. In 2014, the PGA nominated “The Green Prince,” “Life Itself,” “Merchants of Doubt,” “Virunga, and “Particle Fever;” only “Virunga made the final Oscar five. (The winner was Laura Poitras’ “Citizenfour.)

Last year, the PGA did select eventual Oscar nominees “Amy” (which won the Oscar) and “The Look of Silence,” but also chose “The Hunting Ground” and “Meru,” both of which made the Oscar shortlist of 15; PGA selection”Something Better to Come” didn’t even make that cut.

Today, the committee of some 30 or more PGA documentary producers nominated two anticipated films in Roger Ross Williams’ “Life, Animated” (The Orchard/A & E) and Ezra Edelman’s “O.J.: Made in America” (Espn Films). Both were much-lauded Sundance hits and made the Doc NYC Shortlist.

Unsurprising surprises dominated this morning’s Producers Guild of America documentary nominees. While the PGA’s feature nominees often align with Oscar contenders, that’s often untrue for the documentaries. In 2014, the PGA nominated “The Green Prince,” “Life Itself,” “Merchants of Doubt,” “Virunga, and “Particle Fever;” only “Virunga made the final Oscar five. (The winner was Laura Poitras’ “Citizenfour.)

Last year, the PGA did select eventual Oscar nominees “Amy” (which won the Oscar) and “The Look of Silence,” but also chose “The Hunting Ground” and “Meru,” both of which made the Oscar shortlist of 15; PGA selection”Something Better to Come” didn’t even make that cut.

Today, the committee of 30 PGA documentary producers nominated two anticipated films in Roger Ross Williams’ “Life, Animated” (The Orchard/A & E) and Ezra Edelman’s “O.J.: Made in America” (Espn Films). Both were much-lauded Sundance hits and made the Doc NYC Shortlist.

However, the...

Today, the Producers Guild of America (PGA) announced its Documentary Theatrical Motion Pictures nominees for the 28th Annual Producers Guild Awards. The five nominees are listed below.

“O.J.: Made in America” (Ezra Edelman) “Tower” (Keith Maitland) “Life, Animated” (Roger Ross Williams) “Dancer” (Steven Cantor) “The Eagle Huntress” (Otto Bell)

Read More: Producers Guild Picks 2017 PGA Awards Date

The winners will be revealed at the 28th annual Producers Guild Awards, which will take place on January 28 at the Beverly Hilton. The ceremony will honor James L. Brooks with the Norman Lear Achievement Award in Television, Tom Rothman with the Milestone Award and Irwin Winkler with the David O. Selznick Achievement Award. This year’s awards co-chairs are Donald De Line and Amy Pascal.

Nominations for the Television Series/Specials and Children’s Programs, Long Form Television and Sports and Digital Series will be announced on January 5, while nominations for Theatrical Motion...

The Producers Guild of America on Tuesday announced its documentary film nominees, including Dancer; The Eagle Huntress; Life, Animated; O.J.: Made in America; and Tower.

Steven Cantor's Dancer is a portrait of the ballet dancer Sergei Polunin. Otto Bell's The Eagle Huntress follows a young Kazakh girl as she attempts to become an eagle hunter. Roger Ross Williams' Life, Animated tells the story of a young man with autism who learns to communicate with the help of Disney animated movies. Ezra Edelman's O.J.: Made in America is the five-part study of O.J. Simpson and his life and times. And Keith Maitland's Tower uses...