Month: January 2016

Movie Review: I Confess (1953) Directed by Alfred Hitchcock

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Festival Reviews

Deadlines to Submit your Screenplay, Novel, Story, or Poem to the festival: http://www.wildsound.ca

I CONFESS MOVIE POSTERI CONFESS, 1953
Classic Movie Review

Directed by Alfred Hitchcock
Starring Montgomery Cliff, Anne Baxter, Karl Malden
Review by Steve Painter

SYNOPSIS:

Refusing to give into police investigators’ questions of suspicion, due to the seal of confession, a priest becomes the prime suspect in a murder.

REVIEW:

Alfred Hitchcock was notorious for loathing actors. He once famously remarked that actors should be “treated like cattle.” His least favorite kind of actors were those who used “The Method” technique pioneered by Stanislavski and taught by Lee Strasberg at The Actors’ Studio. Despite his dislike for method actors, one of Hitchcock’s best films starred one of the greatest Method technicians. The movie was I Confess (1953), and its star was Montgomery Clift.

I Confess is not one of Hitchcock’s well known movies. This is hard to believe considering that…

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February 25 2016 – Festival Lineup

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The Thriller Film Festival lineup for the February 25 2016 event has been scheduled.

Take a look at the 7 films that will be showcased. Featuring the best of thriller shorts from all over the world. (Full details of the films will be posted by February 5 2016).

CANTATA IN C MAJOR, 7min, USA, Horror/Musical
Directed by Ronnie Cramer

Six-hundred-five film clips are assembled and used to create a piece of electronic music. As the visual component appears in the center of the screen, the original analog audio is sent to the left channel while it is simultaneously converted into digital music data and sent to the right channel. The digital data is also transposed into traditional musical notation and displayed on the screen as it is converted. The film includes an animated ‘chalkboard’ introduction that explains the entire process.

See full details

CHATEAU SAUVIGNON: TERROIR, 13min, USA, Horror/Family
Directed by David Maire

Follows the isolated adolescent son of a storied vintner family who finds himself torn between obeying his father’s callous restrictions and preventing his ailing mother from deteriorating further. When a doting woman and her indifferent son arrive seeking a tasting and tour of the winery, Nicolas sees an opportunity to help care for his mother, as well as prove his worth to his choleric father.

See full details

VICIOUS, 12min, UK, Horror
Directed by Oliver Park

Lydia’s sister Katie died in mysterious circumstances. When she returns home late one night to find her front door unlocked, a series of strange occurrences suggest she isn’t alone.

See full details

THE ART OF GESTURE, 16min, France, Horror/Thriller
Directed by Ivan Radkine

In a disused chapel, a man is being tortured in a strange way.

See full details

TIME TO EAT, 4min, USA, Horror/Comedy
Directed by Luke Guidici

After being sent to timeout, a mischievous boy’s trip to the basement leads to a monstrous revelation.

See full details

BALLERINA, 5min, USA, Horror/Thriller
Directed by Marc Thomas

A woman at home alone encounters a malevolent presence in the form of a… music box?

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SILENTY WITHIN YOUR SHADOW, 14min, UK, Horror/Thriller
Directed by Scott Lyus

As their relationship grows, Lucette’s obsession for ventriloquism and her dummy Hugo starts to strain her relationship with Jace. To Luctette Hugo is more than just a dummy, he’s her best friend and represents her ambition as an artist, to her, he’s very much real.

See full details

*****
Submit your Horror Short Film to the Festival Today: http://festivalforhorror.com/about/

*****
Submit your Thriller Short Film to the Festival Today:  https://thrillersuspensefestival.com/

Interview with 1st AD Mathew Dunne (War for the Planet of the Apes)

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Matthew Toffolo's Summary

The role of an Assistant Director on a film includes tracking daily progress against the filming production schedule, arranging logistics, preparing daily call sheets, checking cast and crew, and maintaining order on the set. 

It was a pure pleasure to sit down with 1st Assistant Director Mathew Dunne. Mathew has worked on some of the top action movies in the last 20 years, including: Starship Troopers (1998), The Last Samurai (2003), Mission Impossible III (2006), Live Free or Die Hard (2007),  X-Men: First Class (2011), Iron Man 3 (2013), and the last 3 Planet of the Apes movies. As of this interview, Mathew is currently working on War for the Planet of the Apes, coming out in 2017.

Matthew Toffolo: In a typical Hollywood production, how many weeks before shooting does the 1st AD come aboard the film? When setting the schedule for the production, who is generally in the…

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Interview with Graphic Designer Tina Charad (Maleficent, Fifty Shades of Grey)

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Matthew Toffolo's Summary

A Graphic Designer creates the props and set-pieces for film productions and works directly with the Production Designer. Depending on the period and genre, these can be newspapers, love letters, shop signs, posters, cigarette boxes, logos. Basically, they create the original materials needed for a film that haven’t yet been invented.  

I was fortunate enough to interview the extremely talented Graphic Designer Tina Charad. In the last 10 years she has worked on over 30 productions including the films “Robin Hood”, “Edge of Tomorrow”, “World War Z”, “Pirates of the Caribbean”, “The Fifth Wave”, and “RocknRolla”.

Matthew Toffolo: Is there a film or two that you’re most proud of?

Tina: Well, in terms of pure indulgence, of being spoilt and designing beauty day after day, it would be 47 Ronin. Perhaps Maleficent too – for the same reasons.

Tina created images in the film “47 Ronin”:
47_ronin_imageMatthew: How long…

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Thriller Logline of the Day: UNDER THE WEATHER, by Jamahl Peavey

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Submit your Thriller/Suspense Screenplay to the Festival: http://thrillersuspensefestival.com

LOGLINE PITCH:

ACTORTitle: Under The Weather

Written by: Jamahl Peavey

Type: Feature Script

Genre: Mystery, Thriller

Logline: An unlikely witness to a dog’s death must face the killer in a grocery store.

Interested in this logline, please email us at info@wildsound.ca and we’ll forward your email to the writer.

Have a logline? Submit your logline to the monthly logline contest.

TV Festival Announces its January 2016 Screenplay Winners

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WILDsound Festival

Watch each winning screenplay performed by professional actors. 

Deadline to Submit your TV PILOT/SPEC to the Festival: http://tvfestival.org

ACTORTV PILOT – LACIE BIDWELL
January 2016 Reading
Written by Jameel Khan

http://www.wildsoundfestival.com/lacie_bidwell.html

SYNOPSIS:

LACIE BIDWELL is about a girl who’s father created a zombie virus that killed thousands. It’s twelve years later and she’s in college and still has to deal with being the daughter of one of the most hated men in the world.

CAST LIST:

NARRATOR – Sean Ballantyne
LACIE – Elizabeth Owens Skidmore
CHALMERS – Nick Baillie
HOPE – Maya Woloszyn
JEFF/BEN – Jovan Kocic
DAVID/OMAR – Christopher Huron
SAITO – Mandy May Cheetham

—-

ACTORTV PILOT – LIFE IN THE FAST LANE
January 2016 Reading
Written by Debi Calabro

http://www.wildsoundfestival.com/life_in_the_fast_lane.html

SYNOPSIS:

Life in the Fast Lane is about three very different families and how their involvement in the sport of horse racing brings them together.

CAST LIST:

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Horror Logline of the Day: DEAD TROUT WALKIN NOWHERE, by Gary Clemenceau

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Festival for HORROR

Submit your Horror Screenplay to the Festival Today: http://festivalforhorror.com

LOGLINE PITCH:

ACTORTitle: DEAD TROUT WALKIN’ NOWHERE

Written by: Gary Clemenceau

Type: Feature Film

Genre: Mystery-Fantasy-Western-Horror-Comedy

Logline: “A DIE HARD REPO Fisherman FINDS NEMO’s SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION at THE LAST PICTURE SHOW ON THE LEFT. Or does he?”

Interested in this logline, please email us at info@wildsound.ca and we’ll forward your email to the writer.

Have a logline? Submit your logline to the monthly logline contest.

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Movie Review: Strangers on a Train (1951)

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Festival Reviews

Deadlines to Submit your Screenplay, Novel, Story, or Poem to the festival: http://www.wildsound.ca

STRANGERS ON A TRAIN MOVIE POSTERSTRANGERS ON A TRAIN, 1951
Classic Movie Review

Directed by Alfred Hitchcock
Starring Farley Granger, Ruth Roman, Robert Walker
Review by Steven Painter

SYNOPSIS:

Psychotic mother’s boy Bruno Anthony meets famous tennis professional Guy Haines on a train. Guy wants to move into a career in politics and has been dating a senator’s daughter (Ann Morton) while awaiting a divorce from his wife. Bruno wants to kill his father but knows he will be caught because he has a motive. Bruno dreams up a crazy scheme in which he and Guy exchange murders. Guy takes this as a joke, but Bruno is serious and takes things into his own hands

REVIEW:

Put Patricia Highsmith and Raymond Chandler together and you figure you have a pretty good mystery. Replace those two with Alfred Hitchcock and you have a…

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Read Today’s NEW Feature Movie Pitches & Loglines

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WILDsound Festival

Deadline: Screenplay Festival – Get FULL FEEDBACK. Get script performed by professional actors:
http://www.wildsound.ca/screenplaycontest.html

Read Today’s Feature Film Pitches:

Title: ROCKET MONEY
http://www.wildsoundfestival.com/rocket_money_by_joseph_bak…
Written by: Joseph Baker
Type: Feature Film
Genre: Comedy

Title: The Keepers
http://www.wildsoundfestival.com/the_keepers_by_george_much…
Written by: George Muchiri
Type: Feature Film
Genre: Sci-Fi

Title: The Will
http://www.wildsoundfestival.com/the_will_by_ariel_alexande…
Written by: Ariel Alexander
Type: Feature Film
Genre: Mystery, Suspense

Title: The Da Pinchi Code
http://www.wildsoundfestival.com/the_da_pinchi_code_by_oliv…
Written by: Oliver Swartz
Type: Feature Film
Genre: Horror, Thriller

Title: OLD GUN
http://www.wildsoundfestival.com/old_gun_by_vlado_trifonov.…
Written by: Vlado Trifonov
Type: Feature Film
Genre: Drama

Title: Give Us This Day
http://www.wildsoundfestival.com/give_us_this_day_by_matthe…
Written by: Matthew Blocha
Type: Feature Film
Genre: Drama

Title: Just a Game
http://www.wildsoundfestival.com/just_a_game_by_nikolai_kol…
Written by: Nikolai Kolev
Type: Feature Film
Genre: Drama

Title: MODUS OPERANDI
http://www.wildsoundfestival.com/modus_operandi_by_james_he…
Written by: James Helsing
Type: Feature Film
Genre: Thriller, Crime, Mystery

Title: A LITTLE PIECE OF HEAVEN
http://www.wildsoundfestival.com/a_little_piece_of_heaven_b…
Written by: Roger Goldsmith
Type: Feature Film
Genre: Drama

Title: The Pharaohs’…

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Interview with Storyboard Artist Kurt Van der Basch (Star Wars Episodes VII and VIII)

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Matthew Toffolo's Summary

A storyboard artist, or story artist, creates storyboards for film productions that are generally for large scope scenes, actions, and/or camera movements. The artist visualizes the story in collaboration with the director and sketches frames of the story on paper.

It was an honor to sit down with the brilliant storyboard artist Kurt Van der Basch, who  worked on Star Wars: Episode VII. Of course he’s not allowed to talk about it, which is fine because there are so many other questions to ask him.

Please go to his website or follow him on Facebook and view 100s of storyboards from his various credits, including: Assassin’s Creed, Sense8, The Borgias, Chronicles of Narnia, and The Illusionist, to name a few.

Matthew Toffolo: I understand that you are not allowed to talk about Star Wars! No problem. Are you allowed to say that you had a creatively inspiring…

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