LONDON-Postproduction facility Rushes, London, has announced it will sponsor the first Soho Shorts awards, to take place in July 1999 (exact dates to be determined).
Open to young, first-time filmmakers as well as established directors worldwide, the Soho Shorts is the brainchild of Rushes colorist Ben Eagleton, who took his inspiration from a similar event in Sydney, Australia. "The Australian event is a great excuse for film, TV, pop promo and commercials directors to get together with postproduction people and enjoy an event with a very relaxed atmosphere."
The Soho Shorts will have several awards categories, including animation, with prizes donated by Rushes, including free postproduction services and an all-expenses-paid trip to the Cannes International Film Festival.
Rushes managing director Mark Hewitt commented, "Obviously, we aren’t realistically expecting to close Old Compton Street for a whole week while the films are screened. However, we are confident that many of the creative media companies in the area will submit films and that Soho businesses will publicize the event. The films will be screened partly in the street bars, with an awards night. We are hoping the event will become an annual one that really creates a buzz around Soho."
Television and film production companies, as well as film, animation and media colleges will be invited to submit films made since April and between one and 15 minutes in length. Rushes will begin sending out entry forms in early 1999. Those interested in registering or obtaining more information should log onto Rushes’ Web site at www.rushes.co.uk.
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