Creative editorial company Beast has secured Victoria Venantini as its East Coast sales rep. Based in New York, Venantini is an independent consultant with a proven track record in advertising and production sales, having worked with leading clients such as Moxie Pictures, Digital Domain and RSA Films. Venantini comes from a family of creatives and has a background in commercial production, cutting her teeth as an assistant to director Bob Giraldi before transitioning into sales for Coppos Films, RSA, and others. She has worked in various sales, management, and business development roles both in-house and independently with top talent in advertising creative services…The Directors Network (TDN) has signed L.A. comedy commercial director Jonathan David who recently completed another national campaign for Dunkin’ Donuts. His talent for directing performance-based comedy can be seen in hundreds of commercials for agencies both in North America and abroad. Another new director to TDN is David Jellison who is known for his ironic comedy dialogue work. He recently helmed a Florida Lottery ad; other clients include the NFL, General Mills, Honda and Target. Additionally, TDN has signed Barry Markowitz, ASC, for spot representation. Markowitz is known for such features as Crazy Heart and Sling Blade and spots for clients including the World Cup, Goodyear, Dodge and Adidas….The Skouras Agency is now representing cinematographer Nadim Carlsen for commercials and features exclusively in the U.S….Timecode Systems Ltd., which specializes in wireless technologies for sharing timecode and metadata, has appointed Grady Sellards as North American sales director. Sellards will work alongside Adam Parr, Timecode Systems’ global sales director, and the company’s U.S. master distributor, Denecke Inc., to establish Timecode Systems products in the U.S. market….
Jennifer Kent On Why Her Feature Directing Debut, “The Babadook,” Continues To Haunt Us
"The Babadook," when it was released 10 years ago, didn't seem to portend a cultural sensation.
It was the first film by a little-known Australian filmmaker, Jennifer Kent. It had that strange name. On opening weekend, it played in two theaters.
But with time, the long shadows of "The Babadook" continued to envelop moviegoers. Its rerelease this weekend in theaters, a decade later, is less of a reminder of a sleeper 2014 indie hit than it is a chance to revisit a horror milestone that continues to cast a dark spell.
Not many small-budget, first-feature films can be fairly said to have shifted cinema but Kent's directorial debut may be one of them. It was at the nexus of that much-debated term "elevated horror." But regardless of that label, it helped kicked off a wave of challenging, filmmaker-driven genre movies like "It Follows," "Get Out" and "Hereditary."
Kent, 55, has watched all of this — and those many "Babadook" memes — unfold over the years with a mix of elation and confusion. Her film was inspired in part by the death of her father, and its horror elements likewise arise out of the suppression of emotions. A single mother (Essie Davis) is struggling with raising her young son (Noah Wiseman) years after the tragic death of her husband. A figure from a pop-up children's book begins to appear. As things grow more intense, his name is drawn out in three chilling syllables — "Bah-Bah-Doooook" — an incantation of unprocessed grief.
Kent recently spoke from her native Australia to reflect on the origins and continuing life of "The Babadook."
Q: Given that you didn't set out to in any way "change" horror, how have you regarded the unique afterlife of "The... Read More