In her 2022 Toronto curtain raiser “The Swimmers,” telling the true story of two Syrian sisters and their emotional and gruelling journey to Europe to escape the civil war, director Sally El-Hossaini went to great lengths to ensure authenticity, using real-life refugees both in-front of and behind the camera.
For Counterpoints Arts, the U.K. charity that focusses on culture and migration, “The Swimmers” offered a great example of how projects involving refugees and migrants could — and should — be developed. As the organization’s co-founder and director Almir Koldzic explains to Variety, El-Hossaini made sure that “people with lived experiences were represented on every level of production and were respected in that process.”
Since it launched in 2012, Counterpoints has worked alongside the U.K. arts scene as part of its efforts to “inspire social change and enhance inclusion and cultural integration,” putting on numerous film screenings concerning the subject, many during the annual Refugee Week,...
For Counterpoints Arts, the U.K. charity that focusses on culture and migration, “The Swimmers” offered a great example of how projects involving refugees and migrants could — and should — be developed. As the organization’s co-founder and director Almir Koldzic explains to Variety, El-Hossaini made sure that “people with lived experiences were represented on every level of production and were respected in that process.”
Since it launched in 2012, Counterpoints has worked alongside the U.K. arts scene as part of its efforts to “inspire social change and enhance inclusion and cultural integration,” putting on numerous film screenings concerning the subject, many during the annual Refugee Week,...
- 6/28/2024
- by Alex Ritman
- Variety Film + TV
At a certain point last month, someone in London or Los Angeles could listen to Arooj Aftab’s music in their AirPods, tuck Taymour Soomro’s debut novel “Other Names for Love” into their bag and head out to a screening of Saim Sadiq’s film “Joyland,” where outside the theater they would pass a movie poster featuring a painting by Salman Toor.
2022 proved to be a banner year for Pakistani artists. Aftab delivered the country’s first Grammy award, winning for best global music performance. Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy directed episodes of “Ms. Marvel,” the critically-acclaimed Disney+ series featuring the first Muslim superhero in the Marvel universe. Novels like Soomro’s “Other Names for Love” and Mohsin Hamid’s “The Last White Man” won praise from critics. Toor became an art-world star with an exhibition at the Whitney Museum and paintings selling for hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Debut writer and...
2022 proved to be a banner year for Pakistani artists. Aftab delivered the country’s first Grammy award, winning for best global music performance. Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy directed episodes of “Ms. Marvel,” the critically-acclaimed Disney+ series featuring the first Muslim superhero in the Marvel universe. Novels like Soomro’s “Other Names for Love” and Mohsin Hamid’s “The Last White Man” won praise from critics. Toor became an art-world star with an exhibition at the Whitney Museum and paintings selling for hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Debut writer and...
- 11/16/2022
- by Malala Yousafzai
- Variety Film + TV
Equality Now (En), the leading international women’s rights organization that uses the law to protect and promote women’s and girls’ rights, will hold its 30th Anniversary Gala in New York on November 15.
The evening will celebrate the organization’s three decades of gender equality work and the En 30 for 30 list of artists, activists, and advocates (previously announced), and will feature inspiring performances of music, drama, and comedy with art and advocacy supporting equality for women and girls
The gala will celebrate the Equality Now 30 for 30 women and changemakers:
Alanis Morissette, Amandla Stenberg, Amy Ziering, Annie Lennox, Asma Jahangir (posthumously), Ayesha Malik, Brisa De Angulo, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Drew Dixon, Elizabeth Evatt, Gloria Steinem, Hibaaq Osman, Jaha Dukureh, Jane Fonda, Judith Bruce, Kimberlé Crenshaw, Linda Perry, Margaret Atwood, Meaza Ashenafi, Nadeen Ashraf, Paola Mendoza, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Ruth Bader Ginsburg (posthumously), Salma Hayek, Sanna Marin, Sapana Pradhan Malla, Sarah Sophie Flicker,...
The evening will celebrate the organization’s three decades of gender equality work and the En 30 for 30 list of artists, activists, and advocates (previously announced), and will feature inspiring performances of music, drama, and comedy with art and advocacy supporting equality for women and girls
The gala will celebrate the Equality Now 30 for 30 women and changemakers:
Alanis Morissette, Amandla Stenberg, Amy Ziering, Annie Lennox, Asma Jahangir (posthumously), Ayesha Malik, Brisa De Angulo, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Drew Dixon, Elizabeth Evatt, Gloria Steinem, Hibaaq Osman, Jaha Dukureh, Jane Fonda, Judith Bruce, Kimberlé Crenshaw, Linda Perry, Margaret Atwood, Meaza Ashenafi, Nadeen Ashraf, Paola Mendoza, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Ruth Bader Ginsburg (posthumously), Salma Hayek, Sanna Marin, Sapana Pradhan Malla, Sarah Sophie Flicker,...
- 11/11/2022
- Look to the Stars
Hillary Clinton is no stranger to film festivals. In 2020, the former Secretary of State traveled to Sundance and Berlin to promote the Hulu docuseries about her career. However, this year Clinton arrived at the Toronto International Film Festival with her daughter Chelsea in a very different capacity — as executive producers. The pair launched the new film and TV company HiddenLight Productions in 2021, but the fruits of those labors just emerged this week.
Friday saw the premiere of the documentary “In Her Hands,” a portrait of former Afghan female mayor Zarifa Ghafari, which the company produced with Netflix. The movie, co-directed by Afghan filmmaker Tamana Ayazi and Oscar nominee Marcel Mettelsiefen (“Watani: My Homeland”) screened the same day as the release of the unscripted AppleTV+ miniseries “Gutsy,” which features the two Clintons in conversation with other famous women. The connection between those two projects hints at the overall focus of BrightLights...
Friday saw the premiere of the documentary “In Her Hands,” a portrait of former Afghan female mayor Zarifa Ghafari, which the company produced with Netflix. The movie, co-directed by Afghan filmmaker Tamana Ayazi and Oscar nominee Marcel Mettelsiefen (“Watani: My Homeland”) screened the same day as the release of the unscripted AppleTV+ miniseries “Gutsy,” which features the two Clintons in conversation with other famous women. The connection between those two projects hints at the overall focus of BrightLights...
- 9/9/2022
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
Click here to read the full article.
After a lifetime spent between his birthplace of Lahore, Pakistan; the United States; and Great Britain, Mohsin Hamid is an expert at not only observing the world around him, but in using his surroundings to feed his art. In 1993, he was a relatively newly arrived transplant to the States and wrote his debut novel Moth Smoke about Pakistan. When he moved to London in 2000, he wrote about the New York City he’d recently left in The Reluctant Fundamentalist. And when he found himself back in his native Lahore, he began to conceive of the idea for The Last White Man, which he wouldn’t sit down to write for many years.
The book, which just hit shelves, imagines a world in which white people begin to turn dark-skinned — slowly at first, a few people waking up without their whiteness in disparate cities across the country,...
After a lifetime spent between his birthplace of Lahore, Pakistan; the United States; and Great Britain, Mohsin Hamid is an expert at not only observing the world around him, but in using his surroundings to feed his art. In 1993, he was a relatively newly arrived transplant to the States and wrote his debut novel Moth Smoke about Pakistan. When he moved to London in 2000, he wrote about the New York City he’d recently left in The Reluctant Fundamentalist. And when he found himself back in his native Lahore, he began to conceive of the idea for The Last White Man, which he wouldn’t sit down to write for many years.
The book, which just hit shelves, imagines a world in which white people begin to turn dark-skinned — slowly at first, a few people waking up without their whiteness in disparate cities across the country,...
- 8/2/2022
- by Seija Rankin
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Riz Ahmed’s Left Handed Films is celebrating four Academy Award nominations this year, one for the live action short film “The Long Goodbye,” in which Ahmed stars, and three as executive producer of the animated documentary sensation “Flee.”
It’s a pretty impressive haul for a company that’s only three years old, but Ahmed and Left Handed executive Allie Moore are just getting started.
“I texted Allie earlier today, and I said, ‘We’ve gotta do better,’” Ahmed teased during an interview with Variety over Zoom.
Reflecting more seriously, he added: “Obviously, we’re pinching ourselves. We’re just really excited for those filmmakers first and foremost. It’s tremendous good luck, but also really encouraging, in that it’s, in some ways, validating the ethos we try and work with.”
The ethos Ahmed mentions is a filmmaker-first approach, with an emphasis on “creating bold, character-driven stories that stretch culture.
It’s a pretty impressive haul for a company that’s only three years old, but Ahmed and Left Handed executive Allie Moore are just getting started.
“I texted Allie earlier today, and I said, ‘We’ve gotta do better,’” Ahmed teased during an interview with Variety over Zoom.
Reflecting more seriously, he added: “Obviously, we’re pinching ourselves. We’re just really excited for those filmmakers first and foremost. It’s tremendous good luck, but also really encouraging, in that it’s, in some ways, validating the ethos we try and work with.”
The ethos Ahmed mentions is a filmmaker-first approach, with an emphasis on “creating bold, character-driven stories that stretch culture.
- 3/1/2022
- by Angelique Jackson
- Variety Film + TV
Former President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama’s production company Higher Ground Productions has expanded its executive team. Priya Swaminathan, the co-head of film and TV at the company, will step down from her role later this summer as part of the change.
Swaminathan was Higher Ground’s first hire, and she oversaw the company’s Oscar-winning “American Factory” and the Oscar-nominated “Crip Camp.” Tonia Davis will now serve as the sole head of film and TV.
Among the company’s new hires are Joe Paulson as head of business and strategy. He was formerly special assistant to the President at the White House and was deputy chief of staff to the former president, having worked with the Obamas since the earliest days of the campaign in 2007 and overseen the creation of Higher Ground.
The company also hired Dan Fierman as head of audio, creative director Anna Holmes and Mark R. Wright...
Swaminathan was Higher Ground’s first hire, and she oversaw the company’s Oscar-winning “American Factory” and the Oscar-nominated “Crip Camp.” Tonia Davis will now serve as the sole head of film and TV.
Among the company’s new hires are Joe Paulson as head of business and strategy. He was formerly special assistant to the President at the White House and was deputy chief of staff to the former president, having worked with the Obamas since the earliest days of the campaign in 2007 and overseen the creation of Higher Ground.
The company also hired Dan Fierman as head of audio, creative director Anna Holmes and Mark R. Wright...
- 7/29/2021
- by Brian Welk
- The Wrap
Priya Swaminathan is stepping down from her role as co-head of film and television at Higher Ground, the media company founded by President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama.
At the same time, the former president and First Lady announced several new additions to the company’s executive team, most notably hiring Joe Paulsen, an old Obama hand, as head of business and strategy.
Swaminathan, a former executive at Annapurna, was the first hire the Obamas made when they launched Higher Ground. She has helped grow the company since joining it in 2019, overseeing the rollout of the Oscar-winning documentary “American Factory” and the Oscar-nominated “Crip Camp.” The decision to leave the company was Swaminathan’s own and she remains a favorite of the Obamas, as evidenced by a glowing statement they released.
“We are so grateful to Priya for her tremendous impact at Higher Ground these past few years,” the Obamas said in a statement.
At the same time, the former president and First Lady announced several new additions to the company’s executive team, most notably hiring Joe Paulsen, an old Obama hand, as head of business and strategy.
Swaminathan, a former executive at Annapurna, was the first hire the Obamas made when they launched Higher Ground. She has helped grow the company since joining it in 2019, overseeing the rollout of the Oscar-winning documentary “American Factory” and the Oscar-nominated “Crip Camp.” The decision to leave the company was Swaminathan’s own and she remains a favorite of the Obamas, as evidenced by a glowing statement they released.
“We are so grateful to Priya for her tremendous impact at Higher Ground these past few years,” the Obamas said in a statement.
- 7/29/2021
- by Brent Lang
- Variety Film + TV
Six writers will provide love stories about Black teens for the crossover project.
Barack and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground is reteaming with Temple Hill Entertainment to develop Blackout, a film and TV project for Netflix.
The project, being developed concurrently as both a series and a feature under Higher Ground’s overall deal with Netflix, will be based on Black love stories written by six different writers and all set during a power cut on a hot summer night in New York City.
The stories, from writers Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas (novelist behind Temple...
Barack and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground is reteaming with Temple Hill Entertainment to develop Blackout, a film and TV project for Netflix.
The project, being developed concurrently as both a series and a feature under Higher Ground’s overall deal with Netflix, will be based on Black love stories written by six different writers and all set during a power cut on a hot summer night in New York City.
The stories, from writers Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas (novelist behind Temple...
- 7/13/2021
- by John Hazelton
- ScreenDaily
Netflix has ordered a six-part anthology “Blackout,” to be produced by the Obamas’ Higher Ground banner and Temple Hill.
The project is designed to will tell six different stories of Black teenagers who find love during a power outage in New York City. Each installment will be penned by a different writer. The project is being developed concurrently as a TV and a film project through Higher Ground’s overall deal with Netflix.
“When the lights go out and people reveal hidden truths, love blossoms, friendships transform, and all possibilities take flight,” Netflix said.
The stories will be adapted from works penned by authors Dhonielle Clayton (“Tiny Pretty Things”), Tiffany D. Jackson (“Allegedly”), Nic Stone (“Dear Martin”), Angie Thomas (“The Hate U Give”), Ashley Woodfolk (“The Beauty that Remains”) and Nicola Yoon. Among the storylines for the installments that Netflix revealed were “two boys trapped on the subway come face-to-face...
The project is designed to will tell six different stories of Black teenagers who find love during a power outage in New York City. Each installment will be penned by a different writer. The project is being developed concurrently as a TV and a film project through Higher Ground’s overall deal with Netflix.
“When the lights go out and people reveal hidden truths, love blossoms, friendships transform, and all possibilities take flight,” Netflix said.
The stories will be adapted from works penned by authors Dhonielle Clayton (“Tiny Pretty Things”), Tiffany D. Jackson (“Allegedly”), Nic Stone (“Dear Martin”), Angie Thomas (“The Hate U Give”), Ashley Woodfolk (“The Beauty that Remains”) and Nicola Yoon. Among the storylines for the installments that Netflix revealed were “two boys trapped on the subway come face-to-face...
- 7/12/2021
- by Cynthia Littleton
- Variety Film + TV
In the wake of the success of the Kevin Hart feature Fatherhood on Netflix, the producers of that movie, Higher Ground and Temple Hill, are collaborating with the streaming giant once again for a new project entitled Blackout, a film & television event which will be adapted from six different Black love stories written by six different writers.
Those scribes are Dhonielle Clayton (Tiny Pretty Things), Tiffany D. Jackson (Allegedly), Nic Stone (Dear Martin), Angie Thomas (The Hate U Give), Ashley Woodfolk (The Beauty that Remains) and Nicola Yoon. Blackout is being developed as part of Higher Ground’s overall deal with Netflix.
From the perspective of 12 teens with six shots of love, Blackout takes place as a heatwave blankets New York City in darkness and causes an electric chaos. When the lights go out and people reveal hidden truths, love blossoms, friendships transform, and all possibilities take flight.
Those scribes are Dhonielle Clayton (Tiny Pretty Things), Tiffany D. Jackson (Allegedly), Nic Stone (Dear Martin), Angie Thomas (The Hate U Give), Ashley Woodfolk (The Beauty that Remains) and Nicola Yoon. Blackout is being developed as part of Higher Ground’s overall deal with Netflix.
From the perspective of 12 teens with six shots of love, Blackout takes place as a heatwave blankets New York City in darkness and causes an electric chaos. When the lights go out and people reveal hidden truths, love blossoms, friendships transform, and all possibilities take flight.
- 7/12/2021
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
The Barack and Michelle Obama-led shingle Higher Ground has acquired the Michael Keaton film “Worth,” in partnership with their distributor Netflix.
Directed by Sara Colangelo (“The Kindergarten Teacher”), the film is adapted from the Kenneth Feinberg memoir “What Is Life Worth?” and follows the lawyer’s process in awarding the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund.
Netflix will stream the film in the U.S., Canada, Latin America, Australia, the UK, France, Turkey and select other countries. The project played in competition at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, prior to the global spread of coronavirus. It’s set for release this September, marking the 20th anniversary of the attack on New York City.
Feinberg was appointed special master of the compensation fund, tasked by Congress to allocate financial rewards to the victims of the tragedy. The film follows his search to calculate incalculable loss in the face of cynicism, bureaucracy, and the politics of division.
Directed by Sara Colangelo (“The Kindergarten Teacher”), the film is adapted from the Kenneth Feinberg memoir “What Is Life Worth?” and follows the lawyer’s process in awarding the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund.
Netflix will stream the film in the U.S., Canada, Latin America, Australia, the UK, France, Turkey and select other countries. The project played in competition at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, prior to the global spread of coronavirus. It’s set for release this September, marking the 20th anniversary of the attack on New York City.
Feinberg was appointed special master of the compensation fund, tasked by Congress to allocate financial rewards to the victims of the tragedy. The film follows his search to calculate incalculable loss in the face of cynicism, bureaucracy, and the politics of division.
- 2/17/2021
- by Matt Donnelly
- Variety Film + TV
Given the subject matter of Jen Peedom’s first narrative feature, it is somewhat fitting the project has been included in Higher Ground’s production slate.
The production company, owned by Barack and Michelle Obama, will partner with the filmmaker and Netflix on Tenzing – a feature film based on the true story of Tenzing Norgay, the man who first reached the summit of Everest along with Sir Edmund Hillary.
Luke Davies (Lion) wrote the script based on the book Tenzing: Hero of Everest by Ed Douglas.
Peedom, who operates Stranger Than Fiction Films alongside Jo-anne McGowan, will produce with Davies alongside Higher Ground Productions. David Michôd (The King) and Norbu Tenzing Norgay, who is Tenzing Norgay’s eldest son, will executive produce.
The director, whose previous credits include documentaries Sherpa and Mountain, has known Tenzing’s family since 2003, and has been working on working on the feature about his life since 2016.
Jen Peedom.
The production company, owned by Barack and Michelle Obama, will partner with the filmmaker and Netflix on Tenzing – a feature film based on the true story of Tenzing Norgay, the man who first reached the summit of Everest along with Sir Edmund Hillary.
Luke Davies (Lion) wrote the script based on the book Tenzing: Hero of Everest by Ed Douglas.
Peedom, who operates Stranger Than Fiction Films alongside Jo-anne McGowan, will produce with Davies alongside Higher Ground Productions. David Michôd (The King) and Norbu Tenzing Norgay, who is Tenzing Norgay’s eldest son, will executive produce.
The director, whose previous credits include documentaries Sherpa and Mountain, has known Tenzing’s family since 2003, and has been working on working on the feature about his life since 2016.
Jen Peedom.
- 2/9/2021
- by Sean Slatter
- IF.com.au
Barack and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground Productions has unveiled its next round of projects in development at Netflix.
Among the new film and series projects in the works are an adaptation of the Mohsin Hamid novel “Exit West” starring Riz Ahmed, a science fiction film written by Ola Shokunbi, a docuseries about National Parks and a series adaptation of the forthcoming novel “Firekeeper’s Daughter.”
“We created Higher Ground to tell great stories,” the former president and first lady said in a statement. “This group of projects builds upon that goal and the incredible path forged by films like Crip Camp, Becoming, and the Oscar-winning American Factory. From science fiction to the beauty of our natural world to the relationships that define us, Higher Ground continues to strive for fresh perspectives, compelling characters, and a healthy dose of inspiration. We couldn’t be more proud to team up with...
Among the new film and series projects in the works are an adaptation of the Mohsin Hamid novel “Exit West” starring Riz Ahmed, a science fiction film written by Ola Shokunbi, a docuseries about National Parks and a series adaptation of the forthcoming novel “Firekeeper’s Daughter.”
“We created Higher Ground to tell great stories,” the former president and first lady said in a statement. “This group of projects builds upon that goal and the incredible path forged by films like Crip Camp, Becoming, and the Oscar-winning American Factory. From science fiction to the beauty of our natural world to the relationships that define us, Higher Ground continues to strive for fresh perspectives, compelling characters, and a healthy dose of inspiration. We couldn’t be more proud to team up with...
- 2/5/2021
- by Reid Nakamura
- The Wrap
President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama’s production company Higher Ground Productions has set its latest slate of film and TV projects for Netflix.
The streamer is developing two TV series and four feature films as part of the slate.
On the TV side, Reverie and Extant creator Mickey Fisher is adapting Firekeeper’s Daughter, the debut YA thriller from Angeline Boulley. The book follows an 18-year-old Native girl as she reluctantly goes undercover in a police investigation on her Ojibwe reservation. Fisher will serve as showrunner and co-write with Wenonah Wilms, the Horsehead Girls writer who is also from the Ojibwe tribe and will also act as exec producer.
Great National Parks is a natural history docuseries that comes from Blue Planet II filmmaker James Honeyborne. The series, which is produced with Wild Space Productions, will explore some of the most wondrous national parks and wild spaces on Earth...
The streamer is developing two TV series and four feature films as part of the slate.
On the TV side, Reverie and Extant creator Mickey Fisher is adapting Firekeeper’s Daughter, the debut YA thriller from Angeline Boulley. The book follows an 18-year-old Native girl as she reluctantly goes undercover in a police investigation on her Ojibwe reservation. Fisher will serve as showrunner and co-write with Wenonah Wilms, the Horsehead Girls writer who is also from the Ojibwe tribe and will also act as exec producer.
Great National Parks is a natural history docuseries that comes from Blue Planet II filmmaker James Honeyborne. The series, which is produced with Wild Space Productions, will explore some of the most wondrous national parks and wild spaces on Earth...
- 2/5/2021
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama’s production company, Higher Ground Productions, has set a slate of new projects under their deal with Netflix.
The new slate encompasses both TV and film projects, including a film adaptation of Mohsin Hamid’s critically-acclaimed novel “Exit West” and a biopic on Tenzing Norgay, who was the first person to reach the peak of Mount Everest alongside Sir Edmund Hillary. The company is also prepping a U.S. National Parks docuseries and a series adaptation of the Angeline Boulley book “Firekeeper’s Daughter.”
The full description of all the projects can be found below. They are currently in different stages of development, to be released over the next several years.
“We created Higher Ground to tell great stories,” the Obamas said. “This group of projects builds upon that goal and the incredible path forged by films like ‘Crip Camp,’ ‘Becoming,’ and the Oscar-winning ‘American Factory.
The new slate encompasses both TV and film projects, including a film adaptation of Mohsin Hamid’s critically-acclaimed novel “Exit West” and a biopic on Tenzing Norgay, who was the first person to reach the peak of Mount Everest alongside Sir Edmund Hillary. The company is also prepping a U.S. National Parks docuseries and a series adaptation of the Angeline Boulley book “Firekeeper’s Daughter.”
The full description of all the projects can be found below. They are currently in different stages of development, to be released over the next several years.
“We created Higher Ground to tell great stories,” the Obamas said. “This group of projects builds upon that goal and the incredible path forged by films like ‘Crip Camp,’ ‘Becoming,’ and the Oscar-winning ‘American Factory.
- 2/5/2021
- by Joe Otterson
- Variety Film + TV
Pipeline includes Satellite, The Young Wife.
Australian high-altitude director Jennifer Peedom’s Everest feature Tenzing has landed at Netflix under the streamer’s deal with former president Barack Obama and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground Productions (Hgp).
The feature is one of several film and TV projects announced on the Higher Ground slate on Friday (February 5) that includes Oscar contender Riz Ahmed (Sound Of Metal) in the thriller Exit West, and a sci-fi from Rian Johnson (Knives Out) and his producer Ram Bergman.
Tenzing is based on the true story of Tenzing Norgay, the Sherpa who accompanied Edmund Hillary on...
Australian high-altitude director Jennifer Peedom’s Everest feature Tenzing has landed at Netflix under the streamer’s deal with former president Barack Obama and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground Productions (Hgp).
The feature is one of several film and TV projects announced on the Higher Ground slate on Friday (February 5) that includes Oscar contender Riz Ahmed (Sound Of Metal) in the thriller Exit West, and a sci-fi from Rian Johnson (Knives Out) and his producer Ram Bergman.
Tenzing is based on the true story of Tenzing Norgay, the Sherpa who accompanied Edmund Hillary on...
- 2/5/2021
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Barack and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground Productions has unveiled a new slate of projects at Netflix, with subjects ranging from one of the first men to reach the summit of Mt. Everest to a YA thriller centered on a Native American girl.
The company also formally announced it’s developing Exit West, a feature starring Riz Ahmed and based on Mohsin Hamid’s acclaimed novel. News of the movie, directed by Yann Demange (White Boy Rick), first broke in March 2020.
“We created Higher Ground to tell great stories. This group of projects builds upon that goal and the ...
The company also formally announced it’s developing Exit West, a feature starring Riz Ahmed and based on Mohsin Hamid’s acclaimed novel. News of the movie, directed by Yann Demange (White Boy Rick), first broke in March 2020.
“We created Higher Ground to tell great stories. This group of projects builds upon that goal and the ...
Barack and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground Productions has unveiled a new slate of projects at Netflix, with subjects ranging from one of the first men to reach the summit of Mt. Everest to a YA thriller centered on a Native American girl.
The company also formally announced it’s developing Exit West, a feature starring Riz Ahmed and based on Mohsin Hamid’s acclaimed novel. News of the movie, directed by Yann Demange (White Boy Rick), first broke in March 2020.
“We created Higher Ground to tell great stories. This group of projects builds upon that goal and the ...
The company also formally announced it’s developing Exit West, a feature starring Riz Ahmed and based on Mohsin Hamid’s acclaimed novel. News of the movie, directed by Yann Demange (White Boy Rick), first broke in March 2020.
“We created Higher Ground to tell great stories. This group of projects builds upon that goal and the ...
John Freeman, most recently the Executive Editor of Lit Hub and the former editor of Granta, has joined Knopf as an Executive Editor, effective March 15.
“I’ve long admired John’s achievements as an editor and writer, and I can’t wait for him to bring his excellent, adventurous, wide-ranging taste to our list, where he’ll be acquiring fiction, nonfiction, and poetry,” said Reagan Arthur, EVP and Publisher, Knopf/Pantheon/Schocken. Freeman will report directly to Arthur.
In addition to Lit Hub and Granta, Freeman is the founder of Freeman’s, a literary annual published in several countries around the world. Writers he has worked with include Valeria Luiselli, Sayaka Murata, Mohsin Hamid, Barry Lopez, Marlon James, Lydia Davis, Aminatta Forna, Richard Russo, Rebecca Solnit, Mo Yan, Kamila Shamsie, Anthony Shadid, Julie Otsuka, Natalie Diaz, Tracy K. Smith, Aleksandar Hemon, and Julia Alvarez.
Between 2014 and 2020, Freeman edited a series of anthologies about inequality,...
“I’ve long admired John’s achievements as an editor and writer, and I can’t wait for him to bring his excellent, adventurous, wide-ranging taste to our list, where he’ll be acquiring fiction, nonfiction, and poetry,” said Reagan Arthur, EVP and Publisher, Knopf/Pantheon/Schocken. Freeman will report directly to Arthur.
In addition to Lit Hub and Granta, Freeman is the founder of Freeman’s, a literary annual published in several countries around the world. Writers he has worked with include Valeria Luiselli, Sayaka Murata, Mohsin Hamid, Barry Lopez, Marlon James, Lydia Davis, Aminatta Forna, Richard Russo, Rebecca Solnit, Mo Yan, Kamila Shamsie, Anthony Shadid, Julie Otsuka, Natalie Diaz, Tracy K. Smith, Aleksandar Hemon, and Julia Alvarez.
Between 2014 and 2020, Freeman edited a series of anthologies about inequality,...
- 12/9/2020
- by Greg Evans
- Deadline Film + TV
Netflix has set its latest documentary project from Barack and Michelle Obama – a film about the former First Lady on nationwide memoir tour.
Becoming, which is directed by Nadia Hallgren, will take viewers behind the scenes as Michelle Obama travelled to 34 cities on the tour for her book. It will be released on May 6.
It is the latest film since the former President and his wife signed a landmark deal with the streaming service in 2018. The pair, who run Higher Ground Productions, were involved in Crip Camp, the Nicole Newnham and James LeBrecht-directed film about a summer camp for teens with disabilities.
Becoming, which is directed by Nadia Hallgren, will take viewers behind the scenes as Michelle Obama travelled to 34 cities on the tour for her book. It will be released on May 6.
It is the latest film since the former President and his wife signed a landmark deal with the streaming service in 2018. The pair, who run Higher Ground Productions, were involved in Crip Camp, the Nicole Newnham and James LeBrecht-directed film about a summer camp for teens with disabilities.
- 4/27/2020
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
As part of their multi-year deal with Netflix, the Obamas’ production company, Higher Ground, has already released two documentaries to date: the Oscar-winning American Factory, about a Chinese billionaire who opens a factory in post-industrial Ohio, and Crip Camp, about a summer camp for teenagers with disabilities, which opened this year's Sundance Film Festival.
And now, Collider reports, the former President and First Lady have their sights set on a scripted feature inspired by the acclaimed novel Exit West, written by Pakistani author Mohsin Hamid. The book follows a young couple fleeing from an unidentified country in the Middle East and arriving in new lands -- including Mykonos, London, and California -- via a series of magical doors.
Collider reports that Avengers: Endgame fraternal directing duo Joe and Anthony Russo acquired the rights to Exit West in 2017, when the book was released. And President Obama included the tome in his...
And now, Collider reports, the former President and First Lady have their sights set on a scripted feature inspired by the acclaimed novel Exit West, written by Pakistani author Mohsin Hamid. The book follows a young couple fleeing from an unidentified country in the Middle East and arriving in new lands -- including Mykonos, London, and California -- via a series of magical doors.
Collider reports that Avengers: Endgame fraternal directing duo Joe and Anthony Russo acquired the rights to Exit West in 2017, when the book was released. And President Obama included the tome in his...
- 3/6/2020
- by Geoff Weiss
- Tubefilter.com
American Gods producer Fremantle is digging into the literary library with the hire of Wme’s Raffaella de Angelis.
De Angelis has joined the Rtl-owned producer and distributor’s global drama division in a literary acquisitions role, hunting for books to adapt into scripted series. In addition to working at Fremantle’s central drama unit, she will also work for Lorenzo Mieli’s The Apartment, which is part of Fremantle, and Richard Brown’s Passenger, which Fremantle has a multi-year deal with.
Reporting to Christian Vesper, Fremantle’s Evp Creative Director, Global Drama, she is based in London.
She joins from Wme, where she was most recently International Literary Agent and Partner and worked with authors including Alice Munro, Mohsin Hamid, Lauren Groff, Jhumpa Lahiri, Jonathan Lethem, Petina Gappah, Chiara Barzini, Suketu Mehta, Timothy Snyder and Eric Schlosser, and on books such as The Boys In The Boat and When Breath Becomes Air.
De Angelis has joined the Rtl-owned producer and distributor’s global drama division in a literary acquisitions role, hunting for books to adapt into scripted series. In addition to working at Fremantle’s central drama unit, she will also work for Lorenzo Mieli’s The Apartment, which is part of Fremantle, and Richard Brown’s Passenger, which Fremantle has a multi-year deal with.
Reporting to Christian Vesper, Fremantle’s Evp Creative Director, Global Drama, she is based in London.
She joins from Wme, where she was most recently International Literary Agent and Partner and worked with authors including Alice Munro, Mohsin Hamid, Lauren Groff, Jhumpa Lahiri, Jonathan Lethem, Petina Gappah, Chiara Barzini, Suketu Mehta, Timothy Snyder and Eric Schlosser, and on books such as The Boys In The Boat and When Breath Becomes Air.
- 3/6/2020
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
Joe and Anthony Russo’s Agbo production of Mohsin Hamid’s bestseller Exit West is coming together, Deadline has confirmed. The project, which now has Rogue One: A Star Wars Story‘s Riz Ahmed attached to star and executive produce, and Yann Demange directing, is also seeing Michelle and Barack Obama’s Higher Ground Productions and Netflix coming aboard.
A production start of this spring is being eyed.
Deadline broke the news when the Russos snapped up the rights to Exit West back in August 2017. At the time The Imitation Game director Morten Tyldum was set to direct. The novel was a 2017 Man Booker Prize long list selection, and it’s not a shocker to see Higher Ground attached here as Barack Obama included Exit West on his list of top books for that year.
Agbo’s Mike Larocca is producing with Higher Ground’s Tonia Davis and Priya Swaminathan.
A production start of this spring is being eyed.
Deadline broke the news when the Russos snapped up the rights to Exit West back in August 2017. At the time The Imitation Game director Morten Tyldum was set to direct. The novel was a 2017 Man Booker Prize long list selection, and it’s not a shocker to see Higher Ground attached here as Barack Obama included Exit West on his list of top books for that year.
Agbo’s Mike Larocca is producing with Higher Ground’s Tonia Davis and Priya Swaminathan.
- 3/6/2020
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Barack and Michelle Obama have reportedly found their next producing project. The duo will team up with Anthony and Joe Russo (Avengers: Endgame) to produce Exit West, a feature film adaptation of author Mohsin Hamid’s bestselling novel, and Riz Ahmed is currently attached to star. Here’s what we […]
The post ‘Exit West’: Russo Brothers and Obamas to Produce Netflix Film Starring Riz Ahmed appeared first on /Film.
The post ‘Exit West’: Russo Brothers and Obamas to Produce Netflix Film Starring Riz Ahmed appeared first on /Film.
- 3/5/2020
- by Ben Pearson
- Slash Film
Michelle and Barack Obama's Higher Ground Productions and Riz Ahmed are teaming to tackle Exit West, an adaptation of the best-seller by Pakistani author Mohsin Hamid being developed by Netflix.
Ahmed is in negotiations to star and executive produce, while Higher Ground is producing the feature, joining Joe and Anthony Russo’s Agbo, which has been working on an adaptation since 2017. Yann Demange, who helmed the dramas White Boy Rick and '71, is being courted to direct.
The novel is about a young couple, Saeed and Nadia, living in an unnamed city amid a civil war who flee using ...
Ahmed is in negotiations to star and executive produce, while Higher Ground is producing the feature, joining Joe and Anthony Russo’s Agbo, which has been working on an adaptation since 2017. Yann Demange, who helmed the dramas White Boy Rick and '71, is being courted to direct.
The novel is about a young couple, Saeed and Nadia, living in an unnamed city amid a civil war who flee using ...
Michelle and Barack Obama's Higher Ground Productions and Riz Ahmed are teaming to tackle Exit West, an adaptation of the best-seller by Pakistani author Mohsin Hamid being developed by Netflix.
Ahmed is in negotiations to star and executive produce, while Higher Ground is producing the feature, joining Joe and Anthony Russo’s Agbo, which has been working on an adaptation since 2017. Yann Demange, who helmed the dramas White Boy Rick and '71, is being courted to direct.
The novel is about a young couple, Saeed and Nadia, living in an unnamed city amid a civil war who flee using ...
Ahmed is in negotiations to star and executive produce, while Higher Ground is producing the feature, joining Joe and Anthony Russo’s Agbo, which has been working on an adaptation since 2017. Yann Demange, who helmed the dramas White Boy Rick and '71, is being courted to direct.
The novel is about a young couple, Saeed and Nadia, living in an unnamed city amid a civil war who flee using ...
Emily Mortimer.
Carver Films’ Anna McLeish and Sarah Shaw have enlisted an A-list cast and some Hollywood heavy-hitters as co-producers and executive producers for Natalie Erika James’ debut feature Relic.
Emily Mortimer, Robyn Nevin and Bella Heathcote will star in the horror movie which centres on three generations of women – daughter, mother and grandmother – who are haunted by a manifestation of aged dementia that takes over their family home.
Nine Stories’ Jake Gyllenhaal and Riva Marker are producing together with McLeish and Shaw. Anthony and Joe Russo (directors of Marvel’s Captain America and Avengers franchise) and Mike Larocca are executive producing and co-financing via their upstart studio Agbo, which will handle international sales.
Bella Heathcote.
Co-written by James and Christian White, shooting starts in Victoria next week, with funding from Screen Australia and Film Victoria. Umbrella Entertainment is the Australian distributor.
“Relic was inspired by the experience of Alzheimer...
Carver Films’ Anna McLeish and Sarah Shaw have enlisted an A-list cast and some Hollywood heavy-hitters as co-producers and executive producers for Natalie Erika James’ debut feature Relic.
Emily Mortimer, Robyn Nevin and Bella Heathcote will star in the horror movie which centres on three generations of women – daughter, mother and grandmother – who are haunted by a manifestation of aged dementia that takes over their family home.
Nine Stories’ Jake Gyllenhaal and Riva Marker are producing together with McLeish and Shaw. Anthony and Joe Russo (directors of Marvel’s Captain America and Avengers franchise) and Mike Larocca are executive producing and co-financing via their upstart studio Agbo, which will handle international sales.
Bella Heathcote.
Co-written by James and Christian White, shooting starts in Victoria next week, with funding from Screen Australia and Film Victoria. Umbrella Entertainment is the Australian distributor.
“Relic was inspired by the experience of Alzheimer...
- 10/2/2018
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Exclusive: For a couple of guys whose summer entry Avengers: Infinity War became only the fourth ever to top $2 billion in worldwide ticket sales, and — at least until their sequel next summer — wiped out a good portion of the signature characters of the Marvel universe, Joe and Anthony Russo have been extreme multi-taskers, moving in overdrive to get their Agbo studio up and running. They’ve just firmed with Netflix plans for an India and Thailand shoot for Dhaka, a kidnap extraction drama that will star Chris Hemsworth — whose Thor character is central to the two Avengers films — and marks the feature directorial debut of Sam Hargrave. He has graduated from being Chris Evans’ stunt double in Captain America: The Winter Soldier to fight to stunt coordinator in Captain America: Civil War, to holding those jobs plus some second unit directing in Avengers: Infinity War. Dhaka is a script written...
- 8/30/2018
- by Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Joe and Anthony Russo’s unnamed production venture has acquired rights to the Mohsin Hamid bestseller Exit West for Morten Tyldum to direct. They have also made a first-look deal with Tyldum and his Mimir banner. The Russos will produce the film based on a novel that was a Man Booker Prize long list selection this year. While the Russos have been directing back-to-back The Avengers sequels for Marvel, they methodically have been putting together the pieces for…...
- 8/10/2017
- Deadline
Back in February, the American Library Association announced that it would be partnering with actress Sarah Jessica Parker to launch Book Club Central, a website with book picks and resources for readers. After months of waiting, we finally have Sjp’s first pick: Stephanie Powell Watts’ No One Is Coming to Save Us ($18, amazon.com).
Watts’ debut, which was released in April, is a modern day retelling of The Great Gatsby with an African American family in North Carolina. We meet Jj Ferguson, who stirs up drama when he moves back to his declining hometown to build his dream mansion...
Watts’ debut, which was released in April, is a modern day retelling of The Great Gatsby with an African American family in North Carolina. We meet Jj Ferguson, who stirs up drama when he moves back to his declining hometown to build his dream mansion...
- 6/27/2017
- by Real Simple Staff
- PEOPLE.com
Irrfan Khan, who is starring in Hindi Medium, has another interesting project lined up. The actor has been roped in to star in the film adaptation of the novel ‘Moth Smoke’ by Pakistan-born author Mohsin Hamid. Irrfan Khan will be the lead of the film while the actor characters are being cast. Asif Kapadia, whoRead More
The post Irrfan Khan to star in the film adaptation of Pakistani novel Moth Smoke appeared first on Bollywood Hungama.
The post Irrfan Khan to star in the film adaptation of Pakistani novel Moth Smoke appeared first on Bollywood Hungama.
- 5/19/2017
- by Bollywood Hungama News Network
- BollywoodHungama
From new voices like NoViolet Bulawayo to rediscovered old voices like James Salter, from Dave Eggers's satire to David Thomson's history of film, writers, Observer critics and others pick their favourite reads of 2013. And they tell us what they hope to find under the tree …
Curtis Sittenfeld
Novelist
My favourite books of 2013 are Drama High (Riverhead) by Michael Sokolove, Sea Creatures (Turnaround) by Susanna Daniel, and & Sons (Harper Collins) by David Gilbert. Drama High is incredibly smart, moving non-fiction about an American drama teacher who for four decades coaxed sophisticated and nuanced theatrical performances out of teenage students who weren't privileged or otherwise remarkable and in so doing, changed their conceptions of what they could do with their lives. Sea Creatures is a gripping, beautifully written novel about the mother of a selectively mute three-year-old boy; when she takes a job ferrying supplies to a hermit off the coast of Florida,...
Curtis Sittenfeld
Novelist
My favourite books of 2013 are Drama High (Riverhead) by Michael Sokolove, Sea Creatures (Turnaround) by Susanna Daniel, and & Sons (Harper Collins) by David Gilbert. Drama High is incredibly smart, moving non-fiction about an American drama teacher who for four decades coaxed sophisticated and nuanced theatrical performances out of teenage students who weren't privileged or otherwise remarkable and in so doing, changed their conceptions of what they could do with their lives. Sea Creatures is a gripping, beautifully written novel about the mother of a selectively mute three-year-old boy; when she takes a job ferrying supplies to a hermit off the coast of Florida,...
- 11/24/2013
- by Ali Smith, Robert McCrum, Tim Adams, Kate Kellaway, Rachel Cooke, Sebastian Faulks, Jackie Kay
- The Guardian - Film News
Hilary Mantel, Jonathan Franzen, Mohsin Hamid, Ruth Rendell, Tom Stoppard, Malcolm Gladwell, Eleanor Catton and many more recommend the books that impressed them this year
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Five Star Billionaire by Tash Aw (Fourth Estate) is a brilliant, sprawling, layered and unsentimental portrayal of contemporary China. It made me think and laugh. I also love Dave Eggers' The Circle (Hamish Hamilton), which is a sharp-eyed and funny satire about the obsession with "sharing" our lives through technology. It's convincing and a little creepy.
William Boyd
By strange coincidence two of the most intriguing art books I read this year had the word "Breakfast" in their titles. They were Breakfast with Lucian by Geordie Greig (Jonathan Cape) and Breakfast at Sotheby's by Philip Hook (Particular). Greig's fascinating, intimate biography of Lucian Freud was a revelation. Every question I had about Freud – from the aesthetic to the intrusively gossipy – was...
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Five Star Billionaire by Tash Aw (Fourth Estate) is a brilliant, sprawling, layered and unsentimental portrayal of contemporary China. It made me think and laugh. I also love Dave Eggers' The Circle (Hamish Hamilton), which is a sharp-eyed and funny satire about the obsession with "sharing" our lives through technology. It's convincing and a little creepy.
William Boyd
By strange coincidence two of the most intriguing art books I read this year had the word "Breakfast" in their titles. They were Breakfast with Lucian by Geordie Greig (Jonathan Cape) and Breakfast at Sotheby's by Philip Hook (Particular). Greig's fascinating, intimate biography of Lucian Freud was a revelation. Every question I had about Freud – from the aesthetic to the intrusively gossipy – was...
- 11/23/2013
- by Hilary Mantel, Jonathan Franzen, Mohsin Hamid, Tom Stoppard, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, William Boyd, Bill Bryson, Shami Chakrabarti, Sarah Churchwell, Antonia Fraser, Mark Haddon, Robert Harris, Max Hastings, Philip Hensher, Simon Hoggart, AM Homes, John Lanchester, Mark Lawson, Robert Macfarlane, Andrew Motion, Ian Rankin, Lionel Shriver, Helen Simpson, Colm Tóibín, Richard Ford, John Gray, David Kynaston, Penelope Lively, Pankaj Mishra, Blake Morrison, Susie Orbach
- The Guardian - Film News
Release of the week
From Up on Poppy Hill
Film
Like Studio Ghibli’s best work, From Up on Poppy Hill is driven by the intimate and beautifully realised relationships between the characters. In addition, there’s a wonderful cast of supporting characters, who while not quite as strange as those that inhabit Spirited Away’s bath house, are certainly as well rounded.
It’s also driven by the soundtrack, much more than most Ghibli movies. The studio have always had recognisable themes, but much of the incidental music, beautiful though it can be, is left to recede into the background. Here almost every cue comes to the fore, giving the movie a sense of musicality that’s rather appealing.
In spite of being insubstantial by Ghibli standards, the movie is far from vapid, and it’s certainly entertaining. The dialogue used on the English language dub works well, and the voice cast,...
From Up on Poppy Hill
Film
Like Studio Ghibli’s best work, From Up on Poppy Hill is driven by the intimate and beautifully realised relationships between the characters. In addition, there’s a wonderful cast of supporting characters, who while not quite as strange as those that inhabit Spirited Away’s bath house, are certainly as well rounded.
It’s also driven by the soundtrack, much more than most Ghibli movies. The studio have always had recognisable themes, but much of the incidental music, beautiful though it can be, is left to recede into the background. Here almost every cue comes to the fore, giving the movie a sense of musicality that’s rather appealing.
In spite of being insubstantial by Ghibli standards, the movie is far from vapid, and it’s certainly entertaining. The dialogue used on the English language dub works well, and the voice cast,...
- 9/24/2013
- by Adam Lowes
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
From award-winning Indian director Mira Nair and based on the acclaimed novel by Mohsin Hamid, The Reluctant Fundamentalist (2012) is an explosive view on how one man can epitomise two nations and it is through extremism that lines are drawn. To celebrate the DVD and Blu-ray release of The Reluctant Fundamentalist this coming Monday (16 September), we've kindly been provided with Three DVD copies of Nair's topical drama to give away to our readers, courtesy of UK distributors Kaleidoscope Home Entertainment. This is an exclusive competition for our Facebook and Twitter fans, so if you haven't already, 'Like' us at facebook.com/CineVueUK or follow us @CineVue before answering the question below.
Changez Khan (Riz Ahmed) is a promising business analyst who catches the attention of an influential and tough to please mentor, Jim Cross (Kiefer Sutherland). With his career on the up and having embarked on a passionate relationship with the...
Changez Khan (Riz Ahmed) is a promising business analyst who catches the attention of an influential and tough to please mentor, Jim Cross (Kiefer Sutherland). With his career on the up and having embarked on a passionate relationship with the...
- 9/20/2013
- by CineVue UK
- CineVue
★★★★☆ New York-based Indian director Mira Nair was well-placed to helm a big-screen adaptation of Mohsin Hamid's novel The Reluctant Fundamentalist - and thankfully hasn't disappointed. In this post-9/11 drama, the world of business and the unremitting pursuit of wealth are juxtaposed with religious extremism. The story's main focus is the mutual distrust between East and West and how feelings of alienation can lead to fundamentalism. Changez Khan (Riz Ahmed) comes from a cultured, yet struggling Pakistani family. He wins a scholarship to study at Princeton and lands a job as a financial analyst on Wall Street.
Changez's mentor, tough, uncompromising Jim Cross (Kiefer Sutherland), admires his ambition and his bravado in the face of hardship, and swiftly promotes his protégée. When Changez begins a relationship with the beautiful artist-cum-photographer, Erica (Kate Hudson) it looks as though he has his life mapped out. As Changez freely admits, he loves the...
Changez's mentor, tough, uncompromising Jim Cross (Kiefer Sutherland), admires his ambition and his bravado in the face of hardship, and swiftly promotes his protégée. When Changez begins a relationship with the beautiful artist-cum-photographer, Erica (Kate Hudson) it looks as though he has his life mapped out. As Changez freely admits, he loves the...
- 9/16/2013
- by CineVue UK
- CineVue
Chicago – This week’s What to Watch on DVD, Blu-ray, Netflix, Amazon, On Demand and more is another seemingly random hodge-podge of offerings that you can use to guide your way through the new releases shelf at Best Buy, the On Demand section on Vudu, the store on iTunes, various online DVD retailers and maybe even Netflix and Hulu. Pick your favorites. This is the way we’d rank them if you have a free night or money to burn this week.
Ain’t Them Bodies Saints
Photo credit: IFC Films
“Ain’t Them Bodies Saints”
David Lowery’s beautiful drama was covered more thoroughly in our theatrical review and opens tomorrow at the Music Box Theatre in Chicago (and we’ve already run Matt Fagerholm’s interview with the writer/director) but you can actually watch it now On Demand and so we wanted to included it in What to Watch.
Ain’t Them Bodies Saints
Photo credit: IFC Films
“Ain’t Them Bodies Saints”
David Lowery’s beautiful drama was covered more thoroughly in our theatrical review and opens tomorrow at the Music Box Theatre in Chicago (and we’ve already run Matt Fagerholm’s interview with the writer/director) but you can actually watch it now On Demand and so we wanted to included it in What to Watch.
- 8/30/2013
- by [email protected] (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy will head committee to choose country's first flagbearer in 50 years
Pakistan is planning to submit a film for the best foreign-language Oscar for the first time in 50 years, reports Variety.
The committee responsible for picking the entry has reportedly received tacit support from the Pakistan authorities, despite professing independence. Pakistan has only previously sent two movies to the Academy Awards since the foreign-language category was created in 1965: Akhtar J Kardar's Jago Hua Savera in 1959 and Khawaja Khurshid Anwar's Ghunghat in 1963.
British-Pakistani director Hammad Khan told Variety: "Pakistan has not officially submitted any films for the Academy Awards consideration in 50 years because the state has never taken film seriously, neither as a cultural art form nor as a valuable communal experience." The film-maker, whose 2011 debut feature Slackistan was refused a release in Pakistan unless cuts (which he refused to make) were carried out, added: "In all those years,...
Pakistan is planning to submit a film for the best foreign-language Oscar for the first time in 50 years, reports Variety.
The committee responsible for picking the entry has reportedly received tacit support from the Pakistan authorities, despite professing independence. Pakistan has only previously sent two movies to the Academy Awards since the foreign-language category was created in 1965: Akhtar J Kardar's Jago Hua Savera in 1959 and Khawaja Khurshid Anwar's Ghunghat in 1963.
British-Pakistani director Hammad Khan told Variety: "Pakistan has not officially submitted any films for the Academy Awards consideration in 50 years because the state has never taken film seriously, neither as a cultural art form nor as a valuable communal experience." The film-maker, whose 2011 debut feature Slackistan was refused a release in Pakistan unless cuts (which he refused to make) were carried out, added: "In all those years,...
- 8/2/2013
- by Ben Child
- The Guardian - Film News
Hardly mentioning Islam, the film of The Reluctant Fundamentalist does manage to nail some of the reasons why people turn to terrorism
Religion is curiously absent in both this film and in the novel by Mohsin Hamid it's based on. I read the book when it first came out in 2007, and skim-read it again before seeing the film. When you've dedicated much of your life to studying radicalisation, particularly that of western Muslims, it's difficult to set aside that knowledge and approach a book like this for what it is: a piece of fiction written for the general reader. But it does strike me as odd that there should be so little mention of Islam – I don't think the word even comes up.
My key question, for both Hamid and the director Mira Nair, is what they mean by "fundamentalist". In the film, we learn how Changez Khan, a Pakistani pro-jihad intellectual,...
Religion is curiously absent in both this film and in the novel by Mohsin Hamid it's based on. I read the book when it first came out in 2007, and skim-read it again before seeing the film. When you've dedicated much of your life to studying radicalisation, particularly that of western Muslims, it's difficult to set aside that knowledge and approach a book like this for what it is: a piece of fiction written for the general reader. But it does strike me as odd that there should be so little mention of Islam – I don't think the word even comes up.
My key question, for both Hamid and the director Mira Nair, is what they mean by "fundamentalist". In the film, we learn how Changez Khan, a Pakistani pro-jihad intellectual,...
- 6/3/2013
- by Laura Barnett
- The Guardian - Film News
L iberals in the sub-continent feel compelled to take certain political positions more in order to define themselves than because the positions are defensible. There is a deliberate propagation of half-truths and untruths in the service of the ‘correct’, the understanding being that the ‘morally correct’ and the ‘true’ are not synonymous.
Mira Nair’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist, although partly set in Lahore, was not shot in Pakistan but in Delhi, many of the roles are played by Indian actors – Om Puri, Shabana Azmi. It is a film made largely by Indians but it is still a useful document through which to understand the state of affairs in Pakistan. The screenplay of the film is by Mohsin Hamid, a Pakistani writer who based it upon his own celebrated novel and Mira Nair simply brings it to the screen. Making the film a valuable document is not what Mohsin Hamid says...
Mira Nair’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist, although partly set in Lahore, was not shot in Pakistan but in Delhi, many of the roles are played by Indian actors – Om Puri, Shabana Azmi. It is a film made largely by Indians but it is still a useful document through which to understand the state of affairs in Pakistan. The screenplay of the film is by Mohsin Hamid, a Pakistani writer who based it upon his own celebrated novel and Mira Nair simply brings it to the screen. Making the film a valuable document is not what Mohsin Hamid says...
- 6/2/2013
- by MK Raghavendra
- DearCinema.com
Starring Riz Ahmed, Kate Hudson, Liev Schreiber, Keifer Sutherland, Shabana Azmi, Om Puri
Directed by Mira Nair
The dubbing does subject the content to some tonal drubbing. And one wishes the Indian distributors had just let the characters speak the way they felt. Misguided vocalization cannot take away from the power and inner strengths of Mira Nair’s newest work.
The abject isolation of an individual as he or she grapples with the shifting emotional and cultural dynamics of a society that doesn’t have much patience with dilemmas of the diaspora, is a recurrent theme in Mira Nair’s remarkable oeuvre.
It could be that sassy street boy Krishna in Salaam Bombay peering resentfully into the rolled-up windows of the rich and the privileged as they whisk away his unrealized dreams. It could the high-flying Amelia Earhart kissing the clouds as she flies that plane in splendid solitude in Amelia.
Directed by Mira Nair
The dubbing does subject the content to some tonal drubbing. And one wishes the Indian distributors had just let the characters speak the way they felt. Misguided vocalization cannot take away from the power and inner strengths of Mira Nair’s newest work.
The abject isolation of an individual as he or she grapples with the shifting emotional and cultural dynamics of a society that doesn’t have much patience with dilemmas of the diaspora, is a recurrent theme in Mira Nair’s remarkable oeuvre.
It could be that sassy street boy Krishna in Salaam Bombay peering resentfully into the rolled-up windows of the rich and the privileged as they whisk away his unrealized dreams. It could the high-flying Amelia Earhart kissing the clouds as she flies that plane in splendid solitude in Amelia.
- 5/20/2013
- by Subhash K Jha
- Bollyspice
There are more than a billion Muslims in the world, each with an individual view of life. So why are they viewed as a unified group, asks Mohsin Hamid, author of The Reluctant Fundamentalist
In 2007, six years after the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001, I was travelling through Europe and North America. I had just published a novel, The Reluctant Fundamentalist, and as I travelled I was struck by the large number of interviewers and of audience members at Q&As who spoke of Islam as a monolithic thing, as if Islam referred to a self-contained and clearly defined world, a sort of Microsoft Windows, obviously different from, and considerably incompatible with, the Apple Os X-like operating system of "the west".
I recall one reading in Germany in particular. Again and again, people posed queries relating to how "we Europeans" see things, in contrast to how "you Muslims" do. Eventually I...
In 2007, six years after the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001, I was travelling through Europe and North America. I had just published a novel, The Reluctant Fundamentalist, and as I travelled I was struck by the large number of interviewers and of audience members at Q&As who spoke of Islam as a monolithic thing, as if Islam referred to a self-contained and clearly defined world, a sort of Microsoft Windows, obviously different from, and considerably incompatible with, the Apple Os X-like operating system of "the west".
I recall one reading in Germany in particular. Again and again, people posed queries relating to how "we Europeans" see things, in contrast to how "you Muslims" do. Eventually I...
- 5/20/2013
- by Mohsin Hamid
- The Guardian - Film News
Reading on mobile? See the trailer here
Relations between east and west, and the experience of the subcontinent diaspora in Britain and North America, have been the predominant concern of Mira Nair. Her perceptive, generous, inquiring films have pursued issues that the older, more reserved, less politically engaged Merchant-Ivory-Jhabvala team held back from. Based on a well-regarded novel by Mohsin Hamid, this schematic film interweaves two narratives in 2011 Lahore.
In the present a Jewish-American journalist, Robert Lincoln (Liev Schreiber), known for his sympathetic approach to Pakistan, is sent to interview a leading pro-Islamic intellectual, Changez Khan (Riz Ahmed), in the tense atmosphere of a cafe frequented by student activists. His task is to discover whether Changez was involved in the abduction of an American visiting professor at the local university. That is the thriller aspect.
The second strand centres on Changez insisting upon telling his life story as a pro-western upper-class Pakistani,...
Relations between east and west, and the experience of the subcontinent diaspora in Britain and North America, have been the predominant concern of Mira Nair. Her perceptive, generous, inquiring films have pursued issues that the older, more reserved, less politically engaged Merchant-Ivory-Jhabvala team held back from. Based on a well-regarded novel by Mohsin Hamid, this schematic film interweaves two narratives in 2011 Lahore.
In the present a Jewish-American journalist, Robert Lincoln (Liev Schreiber), known for his sympathetic approach to Pakistan, is sent to interview a leading pro-Islamic intellectual, Changez Khan (Riz Ahmed), in the tense atmosphere of a cafe frequented by student activists. His task is to discover whether Changez was involved in the abduction of an American visiting professor at the local university. That is the thriller aspect.
The second strand centres on Changez insisting upon telling his life story as a pro-western upper-class Pakistani,...
- 5/18/2013
- by Philip French
- The Guardian - Film News
Mira Nair recalls the long and arduous journey of making The Reluctant Fundamentalist in a conversation with Nandita Dutta
Multicultural filmmaker Mira Nair known for making films that win both commercial and critical success might seem to have the best of both worlds, in every sense. For instance, Monsoon Wedding made her the first woman director to receive a Golden Lion at Venice in 2001 as well as raked up more than 30 million Usd at the box office. But her latest film-The Reluctant Fundamentalist-was realized through a long and arduous journey, full of ups and downs, just like any independent filmmaker in any part of the world would have it. Investors came and disappeared, budgets were slashed and the project fell apart several times.
The Reluctants
“I have always managed to finance every film I want to make. It’s not easy each time but it’s not as tough as this.
Multicultural filmmaker Mira Nair known for making films that win both commercial and critical success might seem to have the best of both worlds, in every sense. For instance, Monsoon Wedding made her the first woman director to receive a Golden Lion at Venice in 2001 as well as raked up more than 30 million Usd at the box office. But her latest film-The Reluctant Fundamentalist-was realized through a long and arduous journey, full of ups and downs, just like any independent filmmaker in any part of the world would have it. Investors came and disappeared, budgets were slashed and the project fell apart several times.
The Reluctants
“I have always managed to finance every film I want to make. It’s not easy each time but it’s not as tough as this.
- 5/18/2013
- by Nandita Dutta
- DearCinema.com
Mira Nair delivers a masterful film that rides high on the minimal expectations of the audiences and turns each scene into a cruel exercise of meeting as well as challenging these expectations, writes Shekhar Deshpande
Riz Ahmed in Mira Nair’s “The Reluctant Fundamentalist”
The events of 9-11 have changed cinema. These changes have been far ranging, from narrative construction and movement to the aesthetics of urgency. The past before and since that day suddenly contracts to illuminate that fateful moment while images pace at the speed that intensifies the here-and-now which, incidentally, tends to be everywhere. It is now impossible to see Muslims and the Eastern cultures without the tinted lenses that all spectators have come to wear, where each gesture is ridden with risk until it has had a chance to prove otherwise. Any film that claims to have “fundamentalist” in its title is likely to invite a...
Riz Ahmed in Mira Nair’s “The Reluctant Fundamentalist”
The events of 9-11 have changed cinema. These changes have been far ranging, from narrative construction and movement to the aesthetics of urgency. The past before and since that day suddenly contracts to illuminate that fateful moment while images pace at the speed that intensifies the here-and-now which, incidentally, tends to be everywhere. It is now impossible to see Muslims and the Eastern cultures without the tinted lenses that all spectators have come to wear, where each gesture is ridden with risk until it has had a chance to prove otherwise. Any film that claims to have “fundamentalist” in its title is likely to invite a...
- 5/17/2013
- by Shekhar Deshpande
- DearCinema.com
Film: "The Reluctant Fundamentalist"; Cast: Riz Ahmed, Shabana Azmi, Om Puri, Kate Hudson, Kiefer Sutherland, Liev Schreiber, Martin Donovan, Nelsan Ellis, Imaad Shah, Adil Hussain, Haluk Bilginer and Meesha Shafi; Director: Mira Nair; Rating: ** 1/2
The film, based on the acclaimed novel of the same name authored by Mohsin Hamid, is a typical Mira Nair film in terms of the cascade of colours, textures, frames and characters. Unlike the novel, the films is a blunt, slow and pretentious work of art.
It's about the meteoric rise and fall of a Pakistani migrant in the Us.
The film begins with an intimidating situation, where an American professor at Lahore University is kidnapped. The CIA with the help of Bobby.
The film, based on the acclaimed novel of the same name authored by Mohsin Hamid, is a typical Mira Nair film in terms of the cascade of colours, textures, frames and characters. Unlike the novel, the films is a blunt, slow and pretentious work of art.
It's about the meteoric rise and fall of a Pakistani migrant in the Us.
The film begins with an intimidating situation, where an American professor at Lahore University is kidnapped. The CIA with the help of Bobby.
- 5/16/2013
- by Rahul Kapoor
- RealBollywood.com
A smooth landing for the Star Trek sequel plus ongoing love for Iron Man 3 means cinematic coffers should live long and prosper
The winner
When the Next Generation cycle of Star Trek movies sputtered to an end in 2003, Nemesis closed out its run with a mediocre £4.8m in the UK, down from previous episode Insurrection's £7.7m. Paramount and Jj Abrams craftily reinvented the brand with the 2009 reboot, debuting with a tasty £5.95m (including £872,000 in previews), on its way to a total of £21.4m. Now comes the sequel, Into Darkness. Given the expanded fanbase established by the 2009 film, and the addition of Sherlock star Benedict Cumberbatch as the Star Fleet's formidable new foe, it's no big surprise to see numbers rise. Even so, Paramount will be more than happy with the achieved result: £8.43m including previews of £1.57m. That's a 42% rise on the debut last time around. Sequels do usually...
The winner
When the Next Generation cycle of Star Trek movies sputtered to an end in 2003, Nemesis closed out its run with a mediocre £4.8m in the UK, down from previous episode Insurrection's £7.7m. Paramount and Jj Abrams craftily reinvented the brand with the 2009 reboot, debuting with a tasty £5.95m (including £872,000 in previews), on its way to a total of £21.4m. Now comes the sequel, Into Darkness. Given the expanded fanbase established by the 2009 film, and the addition of Sherlock star Benedict Cumberbatch as the Star Fleet's formidable new foe, it's no big surprise to see numbers rise. Even so, Paramount will be more than happy with the achieved result: £8.43m including previews of £1.57m. That's a 42% rise on the debut last time around. Sequels do usually...
- 5/15/2013
- by Charles Gant
- The Guardian - Film News
The Reluctant Fundamentalist
Directed by Mira Nair
Written by Mohsin Hamid, Ami Boghani, and William Wheeler
USA, 2013
At this point, it’s fairly trite if accurate to acknowledge how drastically the world has shifted since the terror attacks of September 11, 2001. An equally cliched argument is how the United States has, since that ill-fated day, alienated the rest of the world with its quickly rising paranoia and single-minded obsession with taking down a presumed Other. The Reluctant Fundamentalist represents a missed opportunity to offer a more three-dimensional presentation of the struggles of a Middle Eastern citizen whose ambitions rival those of his American brothers. The ingredients are present, but the combination doesn’t amount to much.
The inciting event occurs during the opening credits, as an American professor is abducted in Pakistan and one of his colleagues is implicated as being involved. An American agent (Liev Schrieber) reaches out to that colleague,...
Directed by Mira Nair
Written by Mohsin Hamid, Ami Boghani, and William Wheeler
USA, 2013
At this point, it’s fairly trite if accurate to acknowledge how drastically the world has shifted since the terror attacks of September 11, 2001. An equally cliched argument is how the United States has, since that ill-fated day, alienated the rest of the world with its quickly rising paranoia and single-minded obsession with taking down a presumed Other. The Reluctant Fundamentalist represents a missed opportunity to offer a more three-dimensional presentation of the struggles of a Middle Eastern citizen whose ambitions rival those of his American brothers. The ingredients are present, but the combination doesn’t amount to much.
The inciting event occurs during the opening credits, as an American professor is abducted in Pakistan and one of his colleagues is implicated as being involved. An American agent (Liev Schrieber) reaches out to that colleague,...
- 5/10/2013
- by Josh Spiegel
- SoundOnSight
Review by Barbara Snitzer
The most surprising detail I noticed while watching this movie is that Kate Hudson gets top billing. Fortunately, her locks and silliness are somehow tamed by her being brunette.
The more surprising detail I learned after having watched the movie is that The Reluctant Fundamentalist is fiction, based on the novel of the same name by Mohsin Hamid.
An even more surprising post-viewing detail I learned was that while the movie globe-trots, the book takes place in only one location, that of the café in Lahore, Pakistan where Changez (Riz Ahmed) meets with American journalist Bobby (Liev Schreiber). At the beginning of their meeting in the café, Changez insists that Bobby listen to Changez’ story in its entirety lest he fail to understand why Changez’ fundamentalist activities are indeed, reluctant.
This might be the first time a great movie made me not want to read the book.
The most surprising detail I noticed while watching this movie is that Kate Hudson gets top billing. Fortunately, her locks and silliness are somehow tamed by her being brunette.
The more surprising detail I learned after having watched the movie is that The Reluctant Fundamentalist is fiction, based on the novel of the same name by Mohsin Hamid.
An even more surprising post-viewing detail I learned was that while the movie globe-trots, the book takes place in only one location, that of the café in Lahore, Pakistan where Changez (Riz Ahmed) meets with American journalist Bobby (Liev Schreiber). At the beginning of their meeting in the café, Changez insists that Bobby listen to Changez’ story in its entirety lest he fail to understand why Changez’ fundamentalist activities are indeed, reluctant.
This might be the first time a great movie made me not want to read the book.
- 5/10/2013
- by Movie Geeks
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
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