Director Ulf Johansson, who left the directorial collective Traktor (repped by bicoastal/international Partizan) this past summer, has teamed with executive producer Philippa Smith to open Smith and Jones Films, with offices in North Hollywood, Calif., and London.…Jason Watts, a former Flame artist from The Mill, London, and Justine White, formerly at Soho 601 (now called One), London, are in the process of setting up Finish, a Flame-based post house in London, according to Discreet. Finish is expected to open formally in January, and offer Discreet’s Flame SD & HD compositing services to clients in commercial, film and TV production….Cine/DRSA International, New York, has signed an exclusive agreement for the U.S. general market with the directing team of Bosco & Jojo. The duo is based in Buenos Aires….Spontaneous, New York, has added design director Jory Hull, producer Kelley McDermott, designer Masayoshi Nakamura, and animator Tamir Diab….Executive producer Gina LoCurcio and editors Jean Kawahara, Ed Feldman, Jessica Congdon and Matt Graham have teamed to form Umlaut Films, a San Francisco-based editorial house. LoCurcio, Feldman and Graham recently came out of now defunct Bob ‘n’ Sheila’s Edit World. Kawahara and Congdon worked at Bob ‘n’ Sheila’s before leaving to pursue independent film and documentary work….Tom McCullough has been promoted to visual effects supervisor at R!OT Manhattan. He will also retain his shop post as senior Inferno artist….Editor Adam Schwartz has come aboard Company X, New York… Audio mixer Mike Greenberg, formerly of CBS Television City, Los Angeles, has joined Eleven, Santa Monica. Also coming aboard audio post house Eleven is studio manager/executive producer DJ Fox-Engstrom, who also heads sales. She was formerly at POP Sound, Santa Monica….New York production company Naked Project has changed its name to Identity….Animation/visual effects house Computer Café, Santa Monica and Santa Maria, Calif., has been renamed CafeFX. Along with Santa Monica-based telecine/spot effects shop The Syndicate, the two divisions will operate under a new corporate umbrella, ComputerCafe Group. The parent company launch paves the way for the formation of additional specialty shops down the road….
Breakout Films and Major Takeaways From This Year’s Sundance Fest
Film wasn't the only thing on people's minds at this year's Sundance Film Festival, which comes to a close Sunday in Park City, Utah ( and online ).
The effects of the wildfires in Southern California loomed large, as did the bittersweet knowledge that this year will be the second to last Sundance based in Park City. Some films offered an escape from reality; others were a pointed reminder of the domestic and international political landscape, from transgender rights to the war in Ukraine.
Here are some of the key takeaways from the 41st edition of the festival.
The effects of the Southern California fires were deeply felt
The wildfires were still burning in parts of Los Angeles when Sundance began last week and reminders of its devastation were everywhere, even on screen. Max Walker-Silverman's "Rebuilding," starring Josh O'Connor as a cowboy who loses his ranch in a wildfire and forms a community with fellow survivors in a FEMA camp, hit close to home for many.
Filmmakers Meena Menon and Paul Gleason lost their home in Altadena where they filmed some of their zombie apocalypse movie "Didn't Die." Sundance artist labs head Michelle Satter lost her Palisades home as well. Satter had an audience of Sundance Institute donors in tears early in the festival while accepting an honor at a fundraising gala.
"It's a deeply devastating time for us and so many others, a moment that calls for all of us coming together to support our bigger community," Satter said. "As a friend recently noted, and I have to listen to this, 'Take a deep breath ... We lost our village, but at the end of the day we are the village.'"
The festival's move to another city dominated conversations
It was a topic... Read More