At press time, SHOOT received word that industry vet Sam Schapiro had passed away. He was 69. Schapiro had a hand in co-founding such production houses over the years as Johns+Gorman Films (now JGF, Hollywood), and now defunct shops DeSort & Sam and Harmony Pictures. He last served as president of Johns+Gorman before departing that company in 1998….Director Andrew Christou, formerly of now defunct Propaganda Films, has joined bicoastal Moxie Pictures….Director Kerry Shaw Brown has come aboard Atlas Pictures, Santa Monica…. September Productions, New York, has opened a satellite called Lunch tv, New York, which will rep directors E.J. Foerster, Steven Shainberg and Neil Salley….Former tomandandy staffers Scott Brittingham, Mitch Davis and Steve Mac have formed Pull, a New York-based music and sound design shop. Brittingham will serve as executive producer, with Davis and Mac as composer and sound designer/engineer, respectively….Hollywood-headquartered animation studio Klasky Csupo has formed Klasky Csupo Broadcast Design and named Sam Schoemann, formerly of Santa Monica-based Fuel, as the division’s exec producer. John Andrews, senior VP of the Klasky Csupo spot divisions—Class-Key Chew-Po Commercials (animation) and ka-chew! (live action)—said that the company decided to return to a higher profile in broadcast design due to emerging opportunities in the marketplace….Anastacia Feldman has been promoted from head of production to executive producer of digital visual effects studio Radium, San Francisco. She will work closely with Steve Schofield, Radium’s exec producer in Santa Monica…Stuart Shook has been named managing director of Irvine, Calif.-based editorial/design/finishing house stun gun…..Composers Greg Kuhn and Tommy O’Brien have joined the staff of Stompbox Music and Sound Design, Santa Monica….Venice, Calif.-based original motion graphics design/production house mOcean, best known in the theatrical and broadcast arenas, has diversified into commercials with projects for Sony PlayStation and Toyota, as well as children’s healthcare and anti-smoking PSAs….Creative services agency Archipelago, with offices in New York, Los Angeles and Denver, has been launched under the aegis of founder Lori Pate. Specializing in branding, promotion, design, production and interactive endeavors for broadcast and ad clientele, the new venture also features broadcast design vet Lee Hunt, designer Dale Herigstad, and two former colleagues of Pate at 3 Ring Circus, Los Angeles—Jeff Boortz and Elaine Cantwell….
London Critics Name “The Brutalist” The Film of the Year
The Brutalist, Brady Corbet’s immigrant saga, won the Film of the Year prize at the 45th London Critics’ Circle Film Awards.
While The Brutalist garnered just one award, it was the marquee honor. Meanwhile Nickel Boys, Conclave and A Real Pain all receivd multiple awards, and Zoe Saldaña was honored twice.
Edward Berger’s Vatican thriller Conclave took two awards for British/Irish Film of the Year and Actor of the Year for Ralph Fiennes, while RaMell Ross’s radical Colson Whitehead adaptation Nickel Boys was recognized with Director of the Year and the Technical Achievement Award for Jomo Fray’s first-person cinematography. Jesse Eisenberg’s dark comedy A Real Pain was the night’s other multiple prizewinner, landing Screenwriter of the Year for the actor-filmmaker, and Supporting Actor of the Year for co-star Kieran Culkin.
Payal Kapadia’s Mumbai-set drama All We Imagine as Light was named Foreign Language Film of the Year, while the Palestinian-Israeli collective behind No Other Land took Documentary of the Year.
Alongside Conclave, British productions awarded by the Circle in the top categories included Mike Leigh’s intimate character study Hard Truths, which took Actress of the Year for Marianne Jean-Baptiste, while Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl was named Animated Feature of the Year. In the British/Irish-specific categories, Saoirse Ronan won British/Irish Performer of the Year for her performances in The Outrun and Blitz, 14-year-old Nykiya Adams won Young British/Irish Performer of the Year for her screen debut in Andrea Arnold’s Bird, and Rich Peppiatt won the... Read More