Venice at Home - Day 1: Noah Baumbach

by Cláudio Alves

Last year, The Film Experience welcomed a new series – Cannes at Home. While works by the world's greatest auteurs premiered at the Croisette, the project was an aid to combat FOMO for those not fortunate enough to attend the event. Now, it's time to introduce a new endeavor focused on the Venice Film Festival and its official selection. From August 31st to September 10th, this series will consider past works from the many filmmakers currently presenting their films in competition, offering a parallel program you can enjoy at home. At the same time, Elisa Giudici will be in Venice, updating us on the festivities.

First up, there's the opening film – White Noise. While we wait for Noah Baumbach's latest to arrive, let's recall the director's history…

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News Catch-up: Honorary Oscars, "Barbie", and RIPs

by Nathaniel R

Peter Weir, picture here on the set of "The Truman Show", will receive an Honorary Oscar in November. © Paramount Pictures

We had intended for June to be our freshly energized new season but that fantasized new season here at TFE had its own mind and said "no no no, maybe July". Neverthless before June ends, a rundown on stories we haven't discussed in the early summer lull. 

HONORARY OSCARS
First things first you have probably heard that the Honorary Oscar recipients were announced...

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450 days until.... BARBIE

© Warner Bros

Warner Bros just released the first promotional image for Barbie. Though we wouldn't normally be so excited for a corporate ploy to sell more toys we have to think there's something larger and more clever at work here...

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April Foolish Pt 5: Best Supporting Actress Possibilities

One thing years of doing the Supporting Actress Smackdown has reminded us of is that though the Academy is sometimes more adventurous with supporting nominations as opposed to leads (in that they'll consider eccentric performances or comic ones slightly more often) they still don't veer too far from their comfort zones of drama, prestige adaptations, heavy tears and the like. But how cool would it be if the Academy really let loose, did something atypical and catapulted themselves into the multiverse ala Everything Everywhere All At Once and found a universe where they would awards stuff like Jamie Lee Curtis's very game, vanity-free, and quite hilarious performance as a IRS auditor. In this same alternate universe they might be more drawn to Nicole Kidman's wilder artistic impulses which are reportedly on display in the backhalf of The Northman, but which they've ignored at the Academy since forever. In the same category of potentially provocative characters, we're on pins and needles wondering what Greta Gerwig will do with her "Babette" role in White Noise.

We're also hoping Whoopi Goldberg (Till), Audra McDonald (Rustin), and Hong Chau (The Whale) have great roles though obviously their parts in these projects could be more tiny and decorative, too. It's all blindfolded conjecture at this point though Lily Gladstone (Killers of the Flower Moon), Michelle Williams (The Fabelmans) and Samantha Morton (She Said) feel like solid bets this far out. CHECK OUT THE NEW CHART FOR THE APRIL FOOLISH PREDICTIONS IN THIS CATEGORY

Oscar Charts ALL NEW 
Prediction Index | Supporting Actress | Supporting Actor | Screenplays | Visual Charts | Music Charts | Animated Feature Chart 

One For Them, One For Me: Noah Baumbach's "Madagascar 3" and "Frances Ha"

A new series by Christopher James

Noah Baumbach at a screening of Frances Ha

Do one for them; do one for you. If you can still do projects for yourself, you can keep your soul.

— Martin Scorsese: A Journey

Many creatives have pointedly or inadvertently taken Martin Scorsese’s career advice. One has to hit it big in order to have clout in Hollywood. Often, it takes clout to make passion projects. In this column, we want to look at the times wherein a filmmaker or actor’s career triumphs have come at a time where they’ve also had to make compromises. In some cases, people have taken the easy cash grab in order to sustain more creative endeavors. Other times, the populist “one for them” ends up being a creative triumph, loosening the talent up.

The first entry in this series belongs to Noah Baumbach, for his wonderfully chaotic 2012. In the same year he begins his partnership behind the camera with Greta Gerwig in Frances Ha (released in 2013), he secretly writes Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted. Do these movies share any DNA, or is it a textbook case of “one for them (I need money), one for me (I’m an artist)”?

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