February 10, 2014 British director Tom Tagholm, best known for the lauded 2012 commercial “Meet the Superhumans” promoting Paralympic Games coverage on U.K.’s Channel 4, has signed with Park Pictures for U.S. and U.K. representation. Tagholm has helmed an eclectic body of work, first at 4 Creative in London where he started, and later working directly with ad agencies….Director Peter Care has joined the U.S. roster of Green Dot Films. U.K. born, Care began his career helming music clips including pioneering work for R.E.M., Depeche Mode, Bruce Springsteen and Cabaret Voltaire. Care’s commercial directing career took off at Satellite Films, the sister company to Propaganda. He eventually moved to Bob Industries and most recently Wondros before joining Green Dot. He’s directed work for Levi’s, Coca-Cola, Verizon, AT&T, Chevy, Domino’s, Chase, Toyota, Sprint, Walgreens and OnStar, among others…. Captain Phillips earned editor Christopher Rouse, A.C.E., the American Cinema Editors Eddie Award for best edited dramatic feature while Jay Cassidy, A.C.E., Crispin Struthers and Alan Baumgarten, A.C.E., won the Eddie for comedy or musical feature for their work on American Hustle. Taking the top animated feature honor was editor Jeff Draheim on the strength of Frozen….
February 20. 2009 Director Chuck Bennett and his long time producer Andrew Denyer, both formerly with Big Lawn Films, have come aboard L.A.-based trio films headed by exec producer/owners Taylor Ferguson and Erin Tauscher…Italian directing duo Borgato & Berte has signed with Savant Film for exclusive U.S. spot representation. Headed by partners/EPs Joby Barnhart and Jamie Miller, Savant becomes Borgato & Berte’s first stateside commercialmaking roost….Gentlemen, a directing duo consisting of Brett Snider and Billy Federighi, has signed with Bandito Brothers for exclusive U.S. spot representation. Gentlemen earned inclusion into SHOOT’s 2008 New Directors Showcase. The duo comes to Bandito Brothers from Uber Content….Editor Joe Kriksciun has joined FilmCore. He will be based in its NY office. Kriksciun had been with Bluerock in NY….Roger Baldacci has been promoted from EVP/creative director to EVP/executive creative director, and Wade Devers from EVP/creative director to EVP/creative director/head of art at Arnold Boston where they will partner with CCO Pete Favat….
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