“Created under a ‘manifesto’ whose directives would make Lars von Trier shudder, this three-part film might look on paper like an exercise in forced hipness. Working under orders tall, whimsical (according to the manifesto, a stuffed animal must make an appearance no matter what) and surreal, Korine’s Lotus Community Workshop drops Val Kilmer in an alternate-universe existence as a BMX-riding motivational speaker with a fanny pack. Fedorchenko’s Russia-set Chronoeye spins the tale of a grumpy inventor whose noisy neighbor interrupts his time-travel experiments. And Kwiecinski’s eerily beautiful Fawns follows a quartet of friends as they prance through an empty Polish town seemingly unconcerned about the deadly flood about to overtake them.” — Cheryl Eddy, San Francisco International Film Festival
Harmony Korine (born January 4, 1973) is a US film director and writer. He first appeared in the public’s eye as the author of film director Larry Clark’s debut, Kids, a tale of irresponsible teenagers in New York which garnered rave reviews but was literally unable to be seen by the intended audience due to the NC-17 / unrated rating.
Following the success of that Harmony directed and co-produced Gummo, another unique story loosely based around the premise of aspects of life in Xenia, Ohio, post-tornado (although most of it was not filmed there). Harmony cast himself in the film, which features very unusual / disturbing images (bacon on the walls, deaf people arguing, delinquent children) in a bit part as a shy gay teenager. He also had a cameo in Kids as a clubgoer. His sometimes girlfriend, actress Chloë Sevigny (who first appeared in Kids) was perhaps the most well-known star in an otherwise largely non-actors movie.
Mr. Korine followed this… read more
Alexei Fedorchenko’s career path can be described as anything but traditional. After graduating in 1988 from the Ural Polytechnical Institute with a degree in economics, Fedorchenko spent two years working in a factory. Eventually, he moved to the documentary facility of Sverdlovsk Studios, which at the time was undergoing a financial crisis. After some time the studio got back on its feet, only to have Fedorchenko move to the Screenwriting department of the Russian Institute of Cinematography. Fedorchenko subsequently spent several years working on documentaries, until he switched gears and made the film First on the Moon. The project was attractive for Fedorchenko because it allowed him to experiment with 1930’s. First on the Moon, released in 2005, has since garnered international praise along with several awards and nominations. —Seagull Films
This week: Responses to the tragedy in Aurora, Jerry Lewis & the stage, the invincible Manoel de Oliveira, Sachs on Garrel + more.
For some, Tribeca’s become “a great facilitator and promoter of international film and video culture.”
An overview of the 55th edition of the oldest continuously running film festival in the Americas.
Also: Jean-Pierre Dardenne heads up Cannes’ Cinefondation jury. And Werner Herzog’s got 2.5 projects in the works.