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Jay Duplass is heading to San Luis Obispo.

The veteran multi-hyphenate has major business at next month’s San Luis Obispo International Film Festival (aka Slo Film Fest), where he is set to receive a spotlight award and present a screening of his new film, The Baltimorons.

Fresh from a SXSW debut in Austin, Texas, The Baltimorons tells the story of how a newly sober man’s Christmas Eve dental emergency leads to an unexpected romance with his older dentist. It stars Michael Strassner Liz Larsen and Olivia Luccardi. Duplass directs from a script he co-wrote with Strassner. The Baltimorons marks Duplass’ first feature that he wrote and directed since 2012’s The Do-Deca-Penathlon. Since then, he’s kept busy on the TV front, directing episodes of Togetherness, Search Party and Somebody Somewhere and producing and executive producing a long list of films and TV shows.

A photo from the set The Baltimorons with Drew Langer,...

Multi-hyphenate filmmaker Jay Duplass has been named as the recipient of this year’s Spotlight Award at the 31st Annual San Luis Obispo International Film Festival (Sloiff.) Duplass will attend the event with a screening of his new film, “The Baltimorons,” followed by a Q&A on Sunday, April 27. The festival runs this year from April 24-29 in San Luis Obispo, the coastal community located midway between Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Duplass is well-known on the independent film circuit for his work and his collaborations with brother Mark Duplass on such films as “The Puffy Chair” and “Cyrus” and for creating such TV shows as “Togetherness” and “Room 104.” In recent years, Duplass has also carved out an impressive acting career with roles on the Emmy-award winning series “Transparent” and “Industry” and films like “Outside In” and “Beatriz at Dinner.”

Skye McLennan, executive director of Sloiff, says, “Personally, I...

Mark Duplass and Sterling K. Brown are seeking best friends for the end of the world.

The duo star as lifelong pals who are the last survivors on the planet after the apocalypse in Mel Esyln’s debut feature film “Biosphere,” which premiered at 2022 TIFF. The film is set to be released by IFC Films.

Per the official synopsis, in the not-too-distant future, the last two men on Earth must adapt and evolve to save humanity. Billy (Mark Duplass) and Ray (Sterling K. Brown) are lifelong best friends, brothers from another mother — they also happen to be the last two men on earth. Their survival is largely due to Ray, a brilliant scientist who designed the custom biosphere they call home, outfitting it with both creature comforts and the necessities to sustain life on a doomed planet. When the population of their fishpond — which supplies essential protein — begins waning, the...

Mark Duplass and Sterling K. Brown have survived the apocalypse. Now what?

The “Safety Not Guaranteed” star and “This Is Us” alum actor play the two last men on Earth who must adapt and evolve to save humanity in Mel Eslyn’s debut feature “Biosphere.” The film premiered at 2022 TIFF and is executive produced by Mark Duplass and Jay Duplass.

Per the official synopsis, Billy (Duplass) and Ray (Brown) are lifelong best friends, brothers from another mother —they also happen to be the last two men on Earth. Their survival is largely due to Ray, a brilliant scientist who designed the custom biosphere they call home, outfitting it with both creature comforts and the necessities to sustain life on a doomed planet. When the population of their fishpond — which supplies essential protein — begins waning, the men find themselves facing an ominous future. But life may yet find a way…

Director...

Mel Eslyn’s feature directorial debut stars Sterling K. Brown, Mark Duplass.

Blue Fox Entertainment will kick off international sales at EFM next week on Mel Eslyn’s TIFF 2022 sci-fi comedy Biosphere starring Sterling K. Brown and Mark Duplass.

Eslyn and Duplass wrote the screenplay set in not-too-distant future where the last two men on earth must adapt and evolve to save humanity.

Producers are Zackary Drucker, Eslyn, Maddie Buis, and Shuli Harel. Mark Duplass and Jay Duplass serve as executive producers through their Duplass Brothers Productions.

Blue Fox Entertainment is screening Biosphere in the market. Head of international Lisa Gutberlet...

Toronto Film Festival attendees were surprised this weekend to find director Mel Eslyn’s “Biosphere,” a humorous, semi-futuristic rumination on the last two men on Earth. A late addition to this year’s lineup, the film stars Mark Duplass as the U.S. president and Sterling K. Brown as an advisor, the planet’s sole living humans who are trapped in the biodome of the film’s title. The story sprang from Duplass’ idea of two guys arguing over the virtues of the video game “Mario Bros.,” according to Eslyn.

“They had me at ‘Mario Bros.,’ man,” Brown said. “I always wanted to warp, so I thought that doing this movie would pick up some trade secrets. It can be that simple sometimes.” To which Duplass said: “If the films sells well in Toronto, I’ll teach you how to warp.”

Brown, Duplass, Eslyn and producer Zachary Drucker sat down with Steve Pond,...

Fest runs September 8-18.

An on-stage conversation with Taylor Swift and the feature Biosphere produced by the Duplass Brothers have been added to TIFF programming.

TIFF CEO Cameron Bailey will interview pop icon Swift under the In Conversation With… Industry Conference banner on September 9.

The star will discuss filmmaking and the visual aspects of her music following the first screening of All Too Well: The Short Film on 35mm which she wrote, directed and produced.

Biosphere will play in Special Presentations on September 10 and marks the feature directing debut of Mel Eslyn, the long-time president of Duplass Brothers Productions whose producing credits include Room 104,...

Veteran producer Mel Eslyn’s feature directorial debut Biosphere, starring Emmy winners Sterling K. Brown (This Is Us) and Mark Duplass (The Morning Show), will be making its world premiere as a surprise Special Presentation at the 47th edition of the Toronto Film Festival. The film will make its festival bow in the Visa Screening Room at the Princess of Wales Theatre at 2:30 p.m. on September 10th.

Set in the not-too-distant future, the latest feature from Duplass Brothers Productions follows the last two men on Earth as they adapt and evolve to save humanity. Eslyn directed from her script written with Mark Duplass. She also produced alongside Zackary Drucker, Maddie Buis and Shuli Harel, with Mark Duplass and Jay Duplass serving as executive producers.

Take Two: The Fall Film Festivals’ Must-See Movies From Venice To Telluride To Toronto To New York

“I can’t wait for Toronto audiences...

London outfit the Big Pink have released another new song, “Rage,” which will appear on their first album in 10 years, The Love That’s Ours, out Sept. 30 via Project Melody Music.

“Rage” is a steady, shimmering bit of immersive shoegaze balanced by some energetic jolts, like the clattering drums and the way singer/guitarist Robbie Furze sings the chorus, “So rage/Against the day/You know there is no wasted time/I know I’m not wasting mine.” ‘Rage” also arrives with a music video directed by Irmak Altiner.

The...

HBO Max is putting together an all-star cast for the upcoming original film “The Parenting.”

On Wednesday, the streamer announced that Brian Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Edie Falco and Dean Norris had been cast to star in the horror-comedy, which focuses on a young queer couple who rent a countryside cottage to host a weekend getaway with their parents, only to discover that it is inhabited by a 400-year-old poltergeist. The roles that Cox, Kudrow, Falco and Norris will be playing have yet to be announced.

“The Parenting” is directed by Craig Johnson, and written by Kent Sublette. Chris Bender and Jake Weiner produce the film for Good Fear Content. New Line Cinema co-produces the film. A release date has yet to be announced.

Cox is a recent Screen Actors Guild Award and Golden Globe winner for his role as Logan Roy in the HBO hit “Succession,” which aired its third season last year.

Exclusive: Dorian Missick (Shirley), Pamela Reed (Outside In), Amanda Warren and Jim Klock (The Underground Railroad) will round out the cast of Prime Video’s The Burial, which is currently in production.

They’re set to star alongside previously announced cast members including Jamie Foxx, Tommy Lee Jones, Jurnee Smollett, Mamoudou Athie and Bill Camp.

Based on the New Yorker article by Jonathan Harr, The Burial follows a charismatic personal injury lawyer famous for his impressive track record and loudly unconventional approach who decides to help a funeral home owner save his family business from a predatory corporate behemoth. In a move to bring emotional resonance to a dry contract law case, the lawyer digs up an unexpected and complex web of race, power and oppression that forces everyone to examine long-buried prejudices they didn’t know they had.

Maggie Betts is directing from a script by Doug Wright.

Fox has given a script commitment with penalty to Country Eastern, a single-camera comedy written by India’s top comedian and Bollywood star Vir Das. The intent is for Das to also star in the project, from Party Over Here, the production company founded by the Lonely Island’s Andy Samberg, Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone, and CBS Studios. Fox Entertainment and CBS Studios will co-produce.

Sam Laybourne (Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist) will co-write Country Eastern with Das and will serve as showrunner of the comedy about a young wealthy man from India (a role earmarked for Das) who restarts his life in America with his family. While attempting to rebuild their lives in Memphis, Tennessee, he decides to pursue his passion and become a country music singer. Only problem, he’s sh*t. Total sh*t. He’s going to have to gain some life experience in the States...

Emmy winners Sterling K. Brown and Mark Duplass have teamed up for a new sci-fi movie titled “Biosphere,” directed by Mel Eslyn.

The mysterious movie marks Eslyn’s feature directorial debut. Production on “Biosphere” — written by Eslyn and Duplass — has wrapped, with details of the project’s plot being kept secret.

The new movie is produced by Duplass Brothers Productions and Zackary Drucker, who previously co-directed the Duplass Brothers-produced docuseries “The Lady and the Dale.” ICM Partners is handling worldwide sales for the project.

Eslyn, who was named president of Duplass Brothers Productions in 2017, is the veteran producer behind movies and television series that include “The One I Love,” “Outside In” and “Paddleton.” She also directed three episode of the HBO anthology show “Room 104” and produced the series in its entirety.

Brown is a two-time Emmy winner, best known for his work on NBC’s “This Is Us,” for...

Netflix has rounded out cast for The Chair, a new six-episode half-hour dramedy starring and executive produced by Killing Eve‘s Sandra Oh and co-starring Jay Duplass. Nana Mensah, Bob Balaban, David Morse (Escape at Dannemora) and Everly Carganilla are set as series regulars in the series which hails from Amanda Peet (The Romanoffs) and Game of Thrones creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss. Filming is currently underway in Pittsburgh.

Written and executive produced by Peet, who also serves as showrunner, The Chair centers around the Chair of an English department, Ji-Yoon, played by Oh, at a small university.

Mensah will play Yasmin ‘Yaz’ McKay, a popular, progressive English professor and close colleague of Ji-Yoon (Oh). Balaban portrays Professor Elliot Rentz, a distinguished English professor set in his ways. Morse is Dean Paul Larson, the...

Stand-up star and occasional actor Vir Das has a clear-cut strategy when it comes to balancing his two flourishing careers.

"I have to balance both careers. Stand up (comedy) takes time, so when I act that should be an interesting role," said Vir, revealing the reason which kept him away from films in 2020.

As an actor, Vir is known for his work in Bollywood films such as "Delhi Belly", "Go Goa Gone", "Mastizaade" and "Badmaash Company". Last year, he also starred in the black comedy web series "Hasmuk".

"I think "Hasmukh" was an interesting thing to pursue because a film takes a long time. For me, it's about finding a good character and telling a good story," he said.

Last month, Vir dropped his latest new comedy gig, "Outside In", created out of 30 virtual shows he did during lockdown and featuring audiences from all over the world.  --ians/dc/vnc...

Exclusive: Emmy winner Holland Taylor is set as a lead opposite Sandra Oh in Netflix’s The Chair, a new six-episode half-hour dramedy starring and executive produced by Killing Eve‘s Oh and co-starring Jay Duplass. It hails from Amanda Peet (The Romanoffs) and Game of Thrones creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss.

Written and executive produced by Peet, who also serves as showrunner, The Chair centers on the chair of an English department at a major university. Annie Julia Wyman co-wrote the pilot.

Taylor will play Professor Joan Hambling, a witty, no-nonsense English professor working in the department chaired

by Oh’s character, Ji-Yoon. The two are close friends and confidants.

Peet and Oh executive produce with Peet’s husband, Benioff, Weiss and Bernie Caulfield.

Taylor most recently received her eighth Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress for her turn as Ellen Kincaid, the studio executive in Ryan Murphy’s Hollywood.

Unsurprisingly, with just five days to go until Christmas, the focus for a lot of people has shifted solely towards festive fare, even if the ongoing effects of the Coronavirus pandemic promise a holiday season unlike any other in living memory, with restrictions being tightened around the world as the recent surge in infections shows no signs of slowing down.

Luckily, there are more than enough streaming services available to provide plenty of content to keep everyone occupied, and while Christmas movies have been dominating the Netflix Top 10 most-watched list all week, heartwarming tales of family and friendship aren’t the only titles being added to the library these days.

This week brought almost 30 new additions covering a wide variety of genres, with the biggest of the bunch being Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, which sees the late Chadwick Boseman deliver a career-best performance opposite an equally fantastic Viola Davis...

When beloved filmmaker Lynn Shelton unexpectedly passed away earlier this year, her tight-knit communities rallied together to find a way to honor her legacy in a way that felt appropriate for the big-hearted creator. In July, Seattle’s Northwest Film Forum and Duplass Brothers Productions announced their solution: the launch of the Lynn Shelton “Of a Certain Age” Grant. The $25,000 unrestricted cash grant will be awarded each year to a U.S.-based woman or non-binary filmmaker, age 39 or older, who has yet to direct a narrative feature.

Less than four months later, the selection committee has chosen their inaugural winner: Keisha Rae Witherspoon, a Caribbean-American filmmaker based in Miami. Per the official announcement, “Witherspoon’s work is driven by interests in science, speculative fiction, and fantasy, as well as documenting the unseen and unheralded nuances of diasporic peoples.”

Her dazzling short film “T” world-premiered at the BlackStar Film Festival...

Marc Maron continued to honor the legacy of his late collaborator and girlfriend Lynn Shelton in a new interview with The New York Times. Maron and Shelton were living together when Shelton unexpectedly passed away from an unidentified blood disorder in May. Maron appeared in Shelton-directed features “Outside In” and “Sword of Trust,” while Shelton directed select episodes of Maron’s Netflix series “Glow.”

When it came to setting up his 2017 comedy special at Netflix, Maron believed Shelton was the perfect hire for the job. By 2017, Shelton had seven feature films under her belt (including “Your Sister’s Sister” and “Humpday”) and episodes of major television series such as “Mad Men,” “The Mindy Project,” and “Master of None” on her acclaimed résumé. And yet, Maron tells The Times that Netflix was apprehensive about letting Shelton direct his special.

“I told Netflix I wanted her to direct it. They were concerned that...

To honor the legacy of beloved filmmaker Lynn Shelton, Seattle’s Northwest Film Forum and Duplass Brothers Productions have today announced the launch of the Lynn Shelton “Of a Certain Age” Grant. The $25,000 unrestricted cash grant will be awarded each year to a U.S.-based woman or non-binary filmmaker, age 39 or older, who has yet to direct a narrative feature.

Shelton, who passed away in May, was among the leading voices of American independent film, working on all sides of the camera on such films as “Humpday,” “Your Sister’s Sister,” “Outside In,” and “Sword of Trust.” Like the filmmakers the grant is intended to help, Shelton didn’t direct her own first feature (“We Go Way Back”) until she was 39. In the 15 years that followed, Shelton built a prolific and respected canon of both feature and television work.

“This grant seeks to reinforce that great filmmakers can emerge at any age,...

A version of this story on Kaitlyn Dever first appeared in the Limited Series & Movies issue of TheWrap Emmy magazine.

When Kaitlyn Dever was a little girl, Hollywood seemed like a simple place. “When I first wanted to do acting, I thought you could just do it and be on the Disney Channel like Christie Carlson Romano and Raven-Simoné,” she said with a laugh from the guest house she occupies behind her parents’ home in Los Angeles. “Those women on the Disney Channel were my idols growing up. At first, I just wanted to make people laugh. I remember distinctly (that) the feeling of making my parents laugh was the best thing in the world.”

Of course there was something special in her parents’ laughter: Her dad, after all, had a stint as the voice of Barney, the Purple Dinosaur. But Dever’s ambitions moved beyond kids’ TV, she said,...

Exclusive: Hot on the heels of starring in Booksmart and the series Unbelievable, Kaitlyn Dever is in talks for the female lead in the movie musical adaptation of Dear Evan Hansen. Ben Platt is expected to reprise his stage role as the title character in the film, with Stephen Chbosky (Wonder) directing. Music and lyrics are by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul from their work on the stage hit.

Marc Platt and Adam Siegel will produce through Uni-based Marc Platt Productions and Pasek and Paul are exec producing. Script is by Steve Levenson, who wrote the book for the stage musical.

Dever was Golden Globe-nominated for her harrowing performance in Unbelievable as a rape survivor who was accused by police of lying about her assault. For her role opposite Beanie Feldstein in the Olivia Wilde-directed Booksmart, Dever was recognized as a BAFTA Rising Star. She has grown in the...

A tribute to the life of the late director Lynn Shelton will air Wednesday night live on YouTube and will feature special dedications and performances by Emily Blunt, Reese Witherspoon and Shelton’s partner Marc Maron, among many more.

The program titled “Her Effortless Brilliance: A Celebration of Lynn Shelton Through Film and Music” will air live on YouTube on June 10 at 9 p.m. Et/6 p.m. Pt and will be available for streaming and sharing immediately afterwards. The stream will be available here.

Shelton, the director of “Humpday,” “Your Sister’s Sister” and episodes of “Glow” and “Mad Men,” died suddenly on May 16 at 54 of a previously undisclosed blood disorder.

Also Read: Director Lynn Shelton's Death Stuns Hollywood: 'I Can't Believe I'll Never Hear Her Laugh Again'

Some of Shelton’s closest collaborators, including Emily Blunt, Kaitlyn Dever, Rosemarie DeWitt, the Duplass Brothers, Jeff Garlin, Joshua Leonard, Sean Nelson, Michaela Watkins,...

Lynn Shelton had an unrivaled allegiance to the Seattle film community and to Washington state. Most people trying to make their way in independent film would move their ass down to Los Angeles, but Lynn never forgot where she came from. She would drive down in her Kia Soul and stay in our guesthouse or at a friend’s in order to direct TV shows and get the money she needed to go back to Seattle to make the movies she wanted to make.

When she pitched me “Humpday,” I was married and had a young child. I wanted to stay in L.A. and shoot, but she was steadfast that we should make it in Seattle. And she was right. Being there, she had all these creative people around her, and it elevated the film. When my brother, Jay, worked with her on “Outside In,” I told him, “Go...

Director Lynn Shelton’s collaborator and romantic partner Marc Maron has issued a statement on her death, saying doctors tried hard to save her.

“She collapsed yesterday morning after having been ill for a week,” Maron said. “There was a previously unknown, underlying condition. It was not Covid 19. The doctors could not save her. They tried. Hard.

“I loved her very much as I know many of you did as well. It’s devastating. I am leveled, heartbroken and in complete shock and don’t really know how to move forward in this moment. I needed you all to know. I don’t know some of you. Some I do. I’m just trying to let the people who were important to her know.

“She was a beautiful, kind, loving, charismatic artist. Her spirit was pure joy. She made me happy. I made her happy. We were happy. I made her laugh all the time.

Saturday afternoon brought the unexpected and tragic news of the passing of Lynn Shelton, who died on Saturday morning at the age of 54. The cause of death, as shared by her creative and romantic partner Marc Maron, was an undiagnosed blood disorder.

A writer, director, producer, actor, and editor, Shelton was among the leading voices in independent cinema, breaking out of the 2009 Sundance Film Festival with “Humpday,” and most recently directing “Sword of Trust,” also starring Maron. However, Shelton also worked extensively in television, most recently helming four episodes of Hulu’s “Little Fires Everywhere,” and going behind the camera on episodes of such iconic series as “Mad Men,” “Glow,” “The Good Place,” “Fresh Off the Boat,” and “New Girl.”

Shelton’s film career began at the Slamdance Film Festival in 2006 with “We Go Way Back,” which earned the Grand Jury Prize, followed by “My Effortless Brilliance,” which premiered at SXSW in 2008. “Humpday,...

Little Fires Everywhere director Lynn Shelton died on Friday, May 15 from a blood disorder. The late director and filmmaker was 54.  According to a statement to E! News from her publicist Adam Kersh, "Lynn indeed had an infectious laugh, was full of life and had an espirit de corps that touched many. She will be greatly missed by her family, friends, the entertainment industry and her fans."  The late director, who began making films in her mid-30s, was best known for her award-winning films including Humpday, Your Sister's Sister, Outside In and many television shows including Glow, Mad Men, The Mindy Project, Master of None, New Girl among...

Friends and former collaborators are remembering writer, director, and producer Lynn Shelton, an award-winning indie filmmaker who died Friday at age 54.

The groundbreaking director was best known for her films Humpday,Your Sister’s Sister (2011), Outside In (2017) and last year’s Sword of Trust.

Humpday, which premiered in 2009 at the Sundance Film Festival, starred Joshua Leonard, Alycia Delmore and Shelton’s frequent collaborator, Mark Duplass.

In a tribute on Instagram Saturday, Leonard called Shelton “one of the greatest forces of nature I’ve ever encountered — a brilliant enthusiast to her core.”

Meanwhile, Duplass said her “infectious spirit” was unrivaled. “We lost our dear friend Lynn Shelton. We made so many things together. I wish we had made more. Her boundless creative energy and infectious spirit were unrivaled. She made me better. We butted heads, made up, laughed, pushed each other. Like family. What a deep loss,” Duplass tweeted.

We lost our dear friend Lynn Shelton.

Writer, director, actor died in Los Angeles from previously unidentified blood disorder.

Lynn Shelton, a doyenne of Us indie cinema who broke out at Sundance with her female gaze comedy Humpday, has died. She was 54.

Shelton died on Friday (May 15) in Los Angeles from a previously unidentified blood disorder. Besides her film accolades, she was a prolific TV director on series such as Mad Men, Glow and Little Fires Everywhere, and a prominent face on the Seattle arts scene.

Shelton was born on August 27, 1965, in Oberlin, Ohio, and grew up in Seattle. She studied at the University of Washington School...

Lynn Shelton, the beloved indie film director who also helmed mainstream TV programs like “Little Fires Everywhere,” “Mad Men” and “Glow,” tragically died on Friday. Her publicist cited a previously unknown blood disorder as the cause of death. She was 54.

Shelton made her directorial debut at the Sundance Film Festival in 2006 with “We Go Way Back” but it was her second feature film, “Humpday,” starring Mark Duplass and Joshua Leonard, that opened up doors for the Seattle native. She would later reunite with Duplass on “Your Sister’s Sister,” led by Emily Blunt and Rosemarie Dewitt, and also worked with Duplass on the drama “Outside In,” while Dewitt would pair up with Shelton again in 2013’s “Touchy Feely.”

Shelton most recently directed four episodes of Hulu’s “Little Fires Everywhere,” starring Reese Witherspoon and Kerry Washington. She also helmed “The Mindy Project” and nine episodes of ABC’s “Fresh of the Boat,...

Lynn Shelton, the director of acclaimed independent films like Humpday and Your Sister’s Sister and episodes of New Girl, G.L.O.W. and Little Fires Everywhere, died Friday at the age of 54.

The cause of death was a blood disorder, Variety reported. Marc Maron, Shelton’s partner at the time of her death, confirmed her death in a statement.

“I have some awful news. Lynn passed away last night. She collapsed yesterday morning after having been ill for a week,” Maron said in a statement (via IndieWire). “There was a previously unknown,...

I regret to inform you all on the sad news that director, Lynn Shelton, has passed away. The talented filmmaker, whose credits include Humpday, Your Sister's Sister, Outside In, Sword Of Truth, as well as the series Mad Men, Glow, and Little Fires Everywhere, was only 54 years old. According to Ms. Shelton's rep, she died due to complications from a previously unidentified blood disorder.…...

Lynn Shelton, a director, writer and producer known for her work on Humpday and more recently the miniseries Little Fires Everywhere, died Friday in Los Angeles from complications of a previously unidentified blood disorder, a rep for Shelton told Deadline. She was 54.

The Hollywood veteran was a leading voice of the new American independent cinema movement of the 2000s, employing her signature style to award-winning films, including Your Sister’s Sister (2011), Outside In (2017) and last year’s Sword of Trust, which starred Marc Maron as a pawnshop owner who obtains a sword that may prove the South actually won the Civil War. Shelton had a role in the film as Maron’s ex-girlfriend Deirdre.

She was collaborating with Maron on a script for an upcoming film, and was in a romantic relationship with him at the time of her death.

Shelton’s television directing credits included Mad Men, Glow, The Morning Show,...

Director and producer Lynn Shelton, who stewarded several popular indie films, including “Humpday,” and also directed a number of episodes for prominent TV shows like “Glow” and “Mad Men,” has died from a previously undisclosed blood disorder, her publicist said on Saturday. She was 54.

Shelton’s prolific output included directing five episodes of “New Girl,” eight episodes of “Fresh off the Boat,” five episodes of “Glow,” two episodes of “Maron” and one episode of “Mad Men,” among work on several other TV series.

The Seattle native started off as an aspiring actor and photographer in her 20s but eventually moved towards filmmaking after being inspired by French director Claire Denis, who had shared she didn’t direct her first movie until she was 40. Shelton directed her first film, “We Go Way Back,” in 2006, but her break came in 2009, when “Humpday,” starring Joshua Leonard, Alycia Delmore and longtime collaborator Mark Duplass,...

Writer, director, producer, actor, and editor Lynn Shelton passed away on Saturday, May 16 at the age of 54 in Los Angeles due to a previously unidentified blood disorder. Shelton was among the leading voices of American independent film, working on all sides of the camera in such films as “Humpday,” “Your Sister’s Sister,” “Outside In,” and “Sword of Trust.”

She was also a prolific television director on television series such as “Mad Men,” “Glow,” and “Little Fires Everywhere.” IndieWire recently interviewed Shelton, along with her creative and romantic partner Marc Maron, about her upcoming projects.

“I have some awful news. Lynn passed away last night. She collapsed yesterday morning after having been ill for a week,” Marc Maron said in a statement. “There was a previously unknown, underlying condition. It was not Covid-19. The doctors could not save her. They tried. Hard.

“I loved her very much as I know many of you did as well.

Editor’s Note: This post is updated monthly. Bookmark this page and come back every month to stay up to date with the best romance movies on Netflix.

Updated for March 2020.

You can see a complete list of new Netflix releases here.

Romance movies are not that different from horror movies. Both are incredibly hard to pull off, are heavily watched during a cold time of year, and hopefully end with every character covered in blood.

With that in mind we present to you a list of the best romantic movies on Netflix. Because romance deserves it, damn it. Virtually every song ever written is a love song but poor romance can’t get a fair shake at the movies. Whether it be a rom-com or just a straight-up soul-enlightening/crushing romance, our list of the best romantic movies on Netflix will get you back in touch with your cold,...

Netflix has ordered The Chair, a new six-episode half-hour dramedy starring and executive produced by Killing Eve‘s Sandra Oh and co-starring Jay Duplass. It hails from Amanda Peet (The Romanoffs) and Game of Thrones creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss.

Written and executive produced by Peet, who also serves as showrunner, The Chair centers on the chair of an English department at a major university. Annie Julia Wyman co-wrote the pilot.

Peet and Oh executive produce with Benioff, Weiss and Bernie Caulfield.

Peet most recently was seen in The Romanoffs and Brockmire. The Chair reunites Peet with Duplass, with whom she worked in Togetherness, created by Jay and Mark Duplass. Her most recent play, Our Very Own Carlin McCullough, debuted in 2018 at the Geffen Playhouse in Westwood. She recently wrapped production on Season 2 of USA network’s anthology series Dirty John: The Betty Broderick Story and...

Stars: Edie Falco, Jay Duplass, Kaitlyn Dever, Ben Schwartz, Charles Leggett, Jay Duplass | Written by Lynn Shelton, Jay Duplass | Directed by Lynn Shelton

Lynn Shelton is a director I’ve been a fan of for a while. I’m a fan of her 2011 film, Your Sister’s Sister. I like her 2014 film, Say When (aka Laggies) and she’s directed episodes of some of my favourite shows, such as Glow and New Girl. I have no earthly idea why it’s taken me so long to see this, her 2017 indie-drama, Outside In. There’s a tone to Shelton’s films, and along with co-writer, Jay Duplass, who I’m also very fond of as a director and writer (Table 19), they’ve created a down-to-earth movie that has that realistic and subtle energy going on, a feel that I’ve always been attracted to.

Duplass himself played ex-con Chris, a...

Awkwafina traverses two cultures in Lulu Wang’s Sundance ’19 hit The Farewell, which A24 opens in New York and Los Angeles this weekend. While the Specialty circuit was mostly on pause over the holiday weekend last week, the second weekend of July is seeing a notable group of indie/limited releases making its way to theaters. Filmmaker Lynn Shelton went straight comedy with Sword Of Trust starring Marc Maron, opening in New York ahead of other cities along with VOD the following week. Jesse Eisenberg, meanwhile, stars in The Art of Self-Defense by Riley Stearns. The Bleecker Street release will target audiences that skew younger than the company’s usual fare. National Geographic is launching doc Sea Of Shadows, also a Sundance premiere, in select locations, while Uncork’d Entertainment is opening writer-director Frederick Cipoletti’s Desolate with Will Brittain, Callan Mulvey and Tyson Ritter day and date with a multi-city theatrical bow.

If you’re a regular reader of The Playlist, odds are you’re familiar with the work of filmmaker Lynn Shelton. The independent director really broke out in 2009, thanks to her film “Humpday.” And since then, Shelton has continued making a name for herself in projects like “Touchy Feely,” “Laggies,” “Outside In,” and the recent “Sword of Trust.” Now, the director is set to helm a project that very well might be the biggest of her career.

Continue reading Lynn Shelton To Direct Hulu Series ‘Little Fires Everywhere’ Starring Reese Witherspoon & Kerry Washington at The Playlist.

Lynn Shelton has signed on to direct and executive produce the upcoming Hulu limited series “Little Fires Everywhere” starring Reese Witherspoon, Kerry Washington, and Rosemarie DeWitt, Variety has learned exclusively.

Shelton will direct four of the series’ eight episodes, including the premiere and finale. Her previous credits include seven features, including “Humpday,” Laggies,” “Outside In,” and the upcoming “Sword of Trust” with Marc Maron, which bows in July. On the TV side, she has directed episodes of shows like “Glow,” “Mad Men,” and Apple’s upcoming drama “The Morning Show,” which also stars Witherspoon. Shelton has also previously collaborated with DeWitt on the films “Your Sister’s Sister” and “Touchy Feely.”

She is repped by UTA and Anonymous Content.

Based on Celeste Ng’s 2017 bestseller of the same name, “Little Fires Everywhere” follows the intertwined fates of the picture-perfect Richardson family and an enigmatic mother and daughter who upend their lives.

As will surprise no one who has seen a film directed by Lynn Shelton, empathy lies at the core of “Sword of Trust.” But after the seriousness of her last feature, “Outside In,” Shelton turns back to comedy with this shaggy, often hilarious, indie starring Marc Maron, Jillian Bell, Michaela Watkins, and Jon Bass as characters Shelton clearly cares about but doesn’t mind us laughing at.

Continue reading Lynn Shelton’s ‘Sword of Trust’ Is Hilarious & Emotional Thanks To Marc Maron & The Great Cast [SXSW Review] at The Playlist.

Exclusive: Emmy winner Edie Falco has been tapped as the lead in CBS drama pilot Tommy (fka Nancy), from the Bull team of co-creator Paul Attanasio and producer Amblin TV.

In Tommy, written by Attanasio and directed by Kate Dennis, Falco stars as the titular character Abigail “Tommy” Thomas. With a New Yorker’s gift for being tough and sarcastic while remaining likable, Tommy — as she likes to be called — loves being a cop more than anything and is a former high-ranking NYPD officer who’s just been hired as the first female Chief of Police for the Lapd. In her new role, Tommy uses her unflinching honesty and hardball tactics to navigate the social, political and national security issues that converge with enforcing the law.

Attanasio executive produces will fellow Bull exec producers Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey of Amblin TV.

Landing the Emmy-winning former Nurse Jackie and The Sopranos star,...

“The Sopranos” star Edie Falco has joined the cast of James Cameron’s “Avatar” sequels, it was announced on Wednesday.

She will play the character General Ardmore, a human in charge of the Rda (Resources Development Administration) in the franchise.

“Edie Falco is one of the greats – I can’t wait to watch her kick some ass on the big screen,” Cameron said in a tweet Wednesday along with the announcement of the news.

The first of the planned sequels, four more films in all, will arrive in theaters Dec. 18, 2020.

Falco joins other new additions to the cast for the sequels all being filmed at once, including Kate Winslet, Oona Chaplin, David Thewlis and Giovanni Ribisi. They join the returning cast of Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana and Stephen Lang in the journey back to Pandora,...

Four-time Emmy winner Edie Falco will play General Ardmore, the commander in charge of the Rda’s interests, in James Cameron’s upcoming Avatar sequels. It was just announced this morning by Cameron and producer Jon Landau on social media (see below).

Last year, Falco was nominated for an Emmy for her performance as Leslie Abramson in NBC’s limited series Law & Order True Crime: The Menendez Murders. Her recent credits include the independent film Outside In and the Netflix pic A Land of Steady of Habits which premiered at last fall at the Toronto Film Festival.

Falco became the only actress to have won the Emmy for Best Actress in both the drama and comedy categories for Nurse Jackie and The Sopranos, the latter of which just celebrated its 20th anniversary. She has been nominated for a record 22 SAG Awards, and became the only actress to ever receive the Emmy,...

Over the past quarter century, the Slamdance Film Festival has served as a launchpad for a number of now high profile filmmakers at the very start of their careers. Here is a baker’s dozen of some of the festival’s greatest discoveries.

Marc Forster

“Loungers”

Forster premiered his $10,000 debut in 1995 and grabbed the Audience Award, and has become one of the most versatile directors working, with other credits including “Monster’s Ball,” “Finding Neverland,” “Stay,” “The Kite Runner,” “Stranger Than Fiction,” “Quantum of Solace,” “World War Z” and “Christopher Robin.”

Rian Johnson

“Evil Demon Golfball from Hell!!!”

Johnson’s irreverent short film played the festival in 1996, launching a career that has dabbled in artistic indies and big-budget franchise blockbusters (“Star Wars: The Last Jedi”).

Greg Mottola

“The Daytrippers”

The writer-director’s 1996 feature debut was produced by Steven Soderbergh and got Mottola work on cult-classic television series “Undeclared,” “Arrested Development,...

The 25th anniversary edition of the Slamdance Film Festival kicks off Jan. 25-31 in Park City, Utah, with a line-up of world premieres, guest speakers and filmmaking seminars all geared toward fresh storytellers who are looking for their cinematic breakthroughs.

This year, further underscoring a desire for world cinema, there are 11 narrative and nine documentary features that will be showcased in competition, from Argentina, Belarus, Brazil, Germany, India, Italy, Kenya, Poland, South Africa and the U.K., alongside the U.S. All competition films are feature-length directorial debuts with budgets of less than $1 million, and lack American distribution.

Founded by current president Peter Baxter, as well as Jon Fitzgerald, Shane Kuhn, Dan Mirvish and Paul Rachman, Slamdance has screened more than 2,000 films over the years, with notable alumni including Christopher Nolan (whose 1999 drama “Following” debuted at the fest), Oren Peli (“Paranormal Activity”), Bong Joon-ho (“Okja”), Lynn Shelton (“Outside In”), Ari Aster...

The first half of January is always busy in the film community, as Oscar voting comes to a close and the Sundance Film Festival starts its engine. This year, the SXSW Film Festival threw its cowboy hat into the ring, pushing up the initial announcement of its film lineup instead of waiting until after Sundance. The result is an even more complex window into major festival premieres and potential discoveries that will distinguish the first quarter of 2019.

The move is partly the result of Sundance ending later than usual; while the festival normally goes until the end of January, this year, it ends February 3. The constrained timeline also impacted SXSW’s earlier submission deadline, and meant that its programming team had to scramble to lock in this year’s selection. “We were tighter about no exceptions to the deadline,” said SXSW Director of Film Janet Pierson in an interview. “We had to be decisive sooner.

In an interview discussing how her own coming out story became fodder for the Emmy Award-winning episode of Netflix’s Master of None, Lena Waithe talked about proudly entering into a room knowing she would make people uncomfortable.

Waithe was asked to expand on this idea of embracing disruption today at the Produced By Conference. She said she’s conscious of attracting stares when she enters a room — and that’s a good thing.

“The things that make me different are also a commodity,” Waithe said. “Being brown. Being female. Having a different point of view. That’s something the industry can make money off of. I don’t write the Thanksgiving episode if I’m not gay, black and female.”

Waithe said studios are eager to buy what she has to sell, because she’s making art from her personal experience.

“What I have to sell is my vulnerability,...

If you’re a fan of Lynn Shelton’s film work, you may have been wondering what the filmmaker has been up to in recent years. Other than last year’s “Outside In,” Shelton hadn’t directed a film of her own since 2014’s “Laggies.” However, in the interim, the filmmaker has been killing it on the TV side, directing dozens of episodes of some of the best TV around.

Continue reading Lynn Shelton’s Next Movie Is The Improvised Ensemble Comedy ‘Sword Of Trust’ With Marc Maron & More at The Playlist.