IS SU E
1
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 27 – MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 29 2014
AT ZURICH FILM FESTIVAL www.ScreenDaily.com
Editorial +44 7713 086 674
Advertising +44 7540 100 254
Shamberg: ‘Anyone with a laptop is their own studio’ Frederick Wiseman
Wiseman shares words of wisdom BY MICHAEL ROSSER
Frederick Wiseman will lead a ZFF Masters talk on Sunday at 5pm at the Filmpodium. The US documentary filmmaker will also attend a screening of his latest feature — National Gallery — here in Zurich at 4pm the same day; the film debuted at Cannes in Directors’ Fortnight. The 84-year-old director received the Venice Golden Lion for lifetime achievement last month and National Gallery, which goes behind the scenes of the London art museum, recently played at Toronto. The film-maker, who does not include interviews or voiceovers in his documentaries, will discuss where his inspiration comes from and what projects attract his attention today at the Masters talk. Wiseman — who made university portrait At Berkeley in 2013 — will revisit his 1967 classic Titicut Follies to make a ballet out of the documentary about the criminally insane.
BY ANDREAS WISEMAN
Acclaimed US producer Michael Shamberg will today hail the filmmaking opportunities afforded by digital platforms and new technology, during his Zurich Summit keynote. “There are enormous opportunities in this space,” the Pulp Fiction executive producer told Screen ahead of his address. “Digital is the medium of now and it will only grow. Within a year or two in the US there will be more money spent on digital advertising than on TV advertis-
ing — $80bn per year. As the revenue shifts for storytellers, more and more Hollywood industry will work in the digital space.” The Oscar-nominated producer, whose credits include Erin Brockovich and Django Unchained, added: “Anybody with a laptop is their own movie studio. You can shoot very cheaply with an iPhone or digital camera, edit at low cost and distribute at low cost. That’s a pretty amazing revolution in media.” Shamberg, who joined viral content publisher BuzzFeed as a
Stefan Haupt
NEWS Completing The Circle Swiss director Stefan Haupt on Oscar submission The Circle » Page 2
PROFILE That funky feeling Tate Taylor talks about Mick Jagger and the making of James Brown biopic Get On Up » Page 4
REVIEW The Drop A flinty, hardboiled thriller » Page 6
SCREENINGS
» Page 9
Swiss Cure taken across Europe
Eddy Motion
BY GEOFFREY MACNAB
The film-making team behind Get On Up walk the opening-night green carpet. Pictured from left are producers John Norris and Victoria Pearman, actor Chadwick Boseman, ZFF co-directors Nadja Schildknecht and Karl Spoerri, and the film’s director Tate Taylor.
Spoerri set to make a splash at tenth “It’s our 10th anniversary so we want to make a big splash with audiences with our line-up of films,” says Karl Spoerri, Zurich Film Festival’s artistic director and co-director, with Nadja Schildknecht. “For the first time we have a great festival centre in the heart of the square, which has reopened after being under construction for two years. It’s a beautiful setting
consultant to its new film-making division BuzzFeed Motion Pictures, will also discuss the company’s film-making model. “There’s an enormous opportunity for people with storytelling skills to work online but digital is a whole different grammar. I’ve been exploring opportunities for those people in that space,” he said. Shamberg, whose recent films A Walk Among The Tombstones and Wish I Was Here both play at the festival, is in pre-production on Julianne Moore and Ellen Page feature drama Freeheld.
TODAY
and was finished just in time,” says Spoerri of the 16,000 sq m Sechseläutenplatz. Spoerri was one of the festival founders in October 2005, when the three-day event focused on debuts and attracted 8,000 visitors. Fast-forward and last year’s edition recorded 71,000 visitors, 122 film titles and 450 guests. This year could be even bigger
with star guests including Diane Keaton, who will receive the Golden Icon award, Cate Blanchett at a screening of Blue Jasmine, and a ZFF Talk with Peter Fonda among others. “Zurich is the perfect festival to launch a film in the Germanlanguage market,” says Spoerri of the line-up. “It fits perfectly into the festival calendar and is very convenient to get to from around
the world. Plus, we’re a very audience-friendly festival.” New for 2014 is a rejigged competition section and a boost to the prize money. The International Feature and International Documentary categories remain but the sections for German-language feature and documentary have been dropped. In their place is Focus: Switzerland, Germany and Austria, which will showcase features and docs from the three countries. Michael Rosser
Swiss feature doc Yalom’s Cure, which premiered at Locarno Film Festival in August, has been snapped up by several European distributors. Sales agent Autlook Film Sales has confirmed that both Swiss distributor Filmcoopi and German outfit Alamode Films, which have acquired the picture, are planning a late 2014 theatrical release in German-speaking territories following Zurich Film Festival. Meanwhile, a number of other buyers have come on board Yalom’s Cure. Rights have gone to France (Sophie Dulac Films), Benelux (Cinemien) and Greece (Filmtrade). Both a Czech/Slovak and a US release will be announced soon. The deals were negotiated by Autlook’s Salma Abdalla. Yalom’s Cure (aka Yalom’s Guide To Happiness) is directed by Sabine Gisiger. The film profiles bestselling author, scholar and existentialist Irvin D Yalom, one of the most influential living psychotherapists. Millions of his books have been sold worldwide. The film is billed as “offering more than a classic biography”, taking the viewer on “an existential journey, navigating the depths and shallows of the human psyche”.