The origin story of the pub central to Shaun of the Dead; A roundup of our Last Night in Soho coverage; Two things to consider avoiding when screenwriting. All in today’s very-British Movie News Rundown.
But First: SCAD Savannah Film Festival wraps tomorrow but its competition winners were announced yesterday. Our reporter Margeaux Sippell has been on the scene in Georgia, writing about lost falcons here and cataloguing advice for careers in post-production there. But check out all the award winners right here.
Tonight in the US: Last Night in Soho, Edgar Wright’s follow up to 2017’s Baby Driver hits theaters tonight. Wright and star Thomasin McKenzie are our Fall cover. And, of course, don’t miss Tim Molloy’s excellent cover story here.
More Soho: Also check out our MovieMaker podcast with Krysty Wilson-Cairns where the Last Night in Soho and 1917 co-writer gives practical screenwriting advice. “When you are giving someone a script to read, the dream version is that they play the movie in their head, right? So you want to have anything that’s technical be as removed as possible,” Wilson-Cairns says.
More Wright: Our Fall Guide to Making Movies issue also includes an exclusive book excerpt from Clark Collis’ forthcoming You’ve Got Red on You: How Shaun of the Dead was Brought to Life. Collis’ book looks at 2004’s zombie comedy Shaun of the Dead and our excerpt looks at how star Simon Pegg’s favorite “boozer” became a crucial setting for Pegg and Wright’s breakout hit.
You’ve Got Red on You: How Shaun of the Dead Was Brought to Life by Clark Collis
This Fall Guide issue sounds great: It is.
How Do I Read It?: It hits newsstands next week, but get a head start with the digital issue, which is available right now.
Film School as a Jumping Off Point: Here at MovieMaker, we’re big supporters of film schools. But sometimes you must realize when to follow the practical well-tread path of their teachings and when to go off in your own direction. I spoke with The Souvenir Part II writer-director Joanna Hogg about how she learned that writing traditional dialogue into her scripts just didn’t work for her. Instead, she writes detailed scenario descriptions and sometimes even inner monologues for her characters.
But Don’t Call it Improvisation: “There’s a map, there’s a plan, which is why I never like calling it improvisation exactly. I always think improvisation is where you’re vaguely trying to find something and there’s no form or there’s no thought-through plan,” Hogg says.
Mubi x Circle Collective: One of the most interesting moviemakers working in the NYC indie scene, Michael M. Bilandic has a new film on the horizon. “New York-based consulting and distribution agency Circle Collective, in partnership with Mubi, is set to release feature Project Space 13, a pandemic-inspired satirical comedy whose team includes DoP Sean Price Williams (Good Time),” Deadline reports.
Name Sounds Familiar, But Catch Me Up: Bilandic’s Hellaware from 2013, is a hilarious art world satire, which like Project Space 13, stars Keith Poulson and is lensed by Sean Price Williams. The art world is notoriously hard to properly satirize. See: 2019’s dreadful Velvet Buzzsaw. So Hellaware is no small achievement. Bilandic’s Jobe’z World follows a rollerblading drug dealer as he avoids the feds after a famous client of his overdoses. Jobe’z World is a wacky ode to a seedy New York that comes alive only after most everyone has gone to sleep.
How Do I Watch?: Jobe’z World and Hellaware are both available to stream on Kanopy.
More Mubi News: The fast-growing streaming service announced a biannual print magazine and the first issue is available for pre-order now. This issue is only available to subscribers to the streaming service. In an era where big print announcements usually involve an operation ceasing, MovieMaker welcomes a company with an exciting voice entering the print mix.
Weekend Read: Film critic Nick Pinkerton has been teasing a deep-dive into this party film which holds the crown as the most pirated film of 2012. And last week, Metrograph published his writeup on Project X.
Additional Reading: Pinkerton’s Substack is worth a spin, should you finish his Metrograph piece by Saturday breakfast.
“Barbara, That’s Excellent”: We leave you with one of my favorite scenes from Shaun of the Dead. Have a great weekend everyone.
Main image: Last Night in Soho director Edgar Wright and a zombie friend on the set of 2004’s Shaun of the Dead. Courtesy of Focus Features.
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