RespectAbility will have a heavy presence at Sundance this year, with a lineup of virtual panels and discussions, all on digital Main Street.
The disability advocacy group is presenting five conversations under the umbrella title the Accessibility & Inclusion Lab; two of the events are in collaboration with Film Independent.
A goal is to encourage authentic representation of disabled people on screen, and to help change how audiences view people with disabilities. Another goal is to give filmmakers the tools to make films more accessible, both for disabled crew members and for audiences.
According to Nielsen, the disability market influences more than a trillion dollars in disposable income. However, with one-in-five people in the U.S. having a disability, there is a startling lack of representation – just 2.3% of characters in the 100 top-grossing films of 2019 and 8% in family films.
“What we see and hear on screen influences how we act in real life,...
The disability advocacy group is presenting five conversations under the umbrella title the Accessibility & Inclusion Lab; two of the events are in collaboration with Film Independent.
A goal is to encourage authentic representation of disabled people on screen, and to help change how audiences view people with disabilities. Another goal is to give filmmakers the tools to make films more accessible, both for disabled crew members and for audiences.
According to Nielsen, the disability market influences more than a trillion dollars in disposable income. However, with one-in-five people in the U.S. having a disability, there is a startling lack of representation – just 2.3% of characters in the 100 top-grossing films of 2019 and 8% in family films.
“What we see and hear on screen influences how we act in real life,...
- 1/28/2021
- by Tim Gray
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: In the wake of taking the John Cassvetees award at this year’s Film Independent Spirit Awards for their comedy Give Me Liberty, the pic’s director/co-scribe Kirill Mikhanovsky and scribe Alice Austen have inked with Wme.
Give Me Liberty was nominated for four Film Independent Spirit Awards this year including Best Editing, Best Male Lead (Chris Galust) and Best Supporting Female (Lauren ‘Lolo’ Spencer). The movie made its world premiere at last year’s Sundance Film Festival and went on to screen in the Directors’ Fornight at last year’s Cannes. Made for less than $500K, Give Me Liberty centers around medical transport driver Vic who risks his job to shuttle a group of rowdy seniors and a Russian boxer to a funeral, dragging a young woman with Als, along for the ride. The pic notched a 91% certified fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.
Previously, Mikhanovsky wrote Gabriel and...
Give Me Liberty was nominated for four Film Independent Spirit Awards this year including Best Editing, Best Male Lead (Chris Galust) and Best Supporting Female (Lauren ‘Lolo’ Spencer). The movie made its world premiere at last year’s Sundance Film Festival and went on to screen in the Directors’ Fornight at last year’s Cannes. Made for less than $500K, Give Me Liberty centers around medical transport driver Vic who risks his job to shuttle a group of rowdy seniors and a Russian boxer to a funeral, dragging a young woman with Als, along for the ride. The pic notched a 91% certified fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.
Previously, Mikhanovsky wrote Gabriel and...
- 2/28/2020
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
The 2020 Film Independent Spirit Awards were handed out Saturday in recognition of the best in indie films from 2019.
Willem Dafoe won the first award, Best Supporting Male, for his role in “The Lighthouse.” “Uncut Gems” won Best Editing, while the Best Documentary award went to “American Factory.” Best Cinematography went to Jarin Blaschke for “The Lighthouse.”
Kelly Reichardt was awarded The Bonnie Award, which recognizes a mid-career female director with a $50,000 unrestricted grant. The John Cassavetes Award, given to the best feature made for under $500,000, was given to “Give Me Liberty.”
Also Read: Independent Spirit Awards 2020: Aubrey Plaza's Best Jokes (So Far)
“Parasite” won Best International Film. Zhao Shuzhen won Best Supporting Female for her role in “The Farewell.” “Marriage Story” won Best Screenplay. Adam Sandler won Best Male Lead for his performance in “Uncut Gems” and Renée Zellweger received the Best Female Lead for her role in “Judy.
Willem Dafoe won the first award, Best Supporting Male, for his role in “The Lighthouse.” “Uncut Gems” won Best Editing, while the Best Documentary award went to “American Factory.” Best Cinematography went to Jarin Blaschke for “The Lighthouse.”
Kelly Reichardt was awarded The Bonnie Award, which recognizes a mid-career female director with a $50,000 unrestricted grant. The John Cassavetes Award, given to the best feature made for under $500,000, was given to “Give Me Liberty.”
Also Read: Independent Spirit Awards 2020: Aubrey Plaza's Best Jokes (So Far)
“Parasite” won Best International Film. Zhao Shuzhen won Best Supporting Female for her role in “The Farewell.” “Marriage Story” won Best Screenplay. Adam Sandler won Best Male Lead for his performance in “Uncut Gems” and Renée Zellweger received the Best Female Lead for her role in “Judy.
- 2/8/2020
- by Beatrice Verhoeven
- The Wrap
Fyzal Boulifa won best director for UK title ‘Lynn + Lucy’.
The 4th International Film Festival & Awards Macao (Iffam) closed on Tuesday night (10) with the top award going to Us film Give Me Liberty directed by Kirill Mikhanovsky.
Stars such as Carina Lau and Juliette Binoche were on the red carpet for the festival, which showed 43 films including 10 in International Competition and six in the New Chinese Cinema Competition. It ran from December 5-10 in and around the Macau Cultural Centre.
Chinese filmmaker Peter Chan Ho-sun headed the jury for first and second-time directors in the international competition. He was joined...
The 4th International Film Festival & Awards Macao (Iffam) closed on Tuesday night (10) with the top award going to Us film Give Me Liberty directed by Kirill Mikhanovsky.
Stars such as Carina Lau and Juliette Binoche were on the red carpet for the festival, which showed 43 films including 10 in International Competition and six in the New Chinese Cinema Competition. It ran from December 5-10 in and around the Macau Cultural Centre.
Chinese filmmaker Peter Chan Ho-sun headed the jury for first and second-time directors in the international competition. He was joined...
- 12/10/2019
- by 134¦Jean Noh¦516¦
- ScreenDaily
Kirill Mikhanovsky’s “Give Me Liberty” and Gu Xiaogang’s “Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains won the best picture prizes in the international and Chinese cinema sections on Tuesday at the International Film Festival and Awards Macau (Iffam).
“This film shouldn’t have existed because there were so many obstacles. Everything was a miracle. Us being here is an utter miracle,” said Mikhanovsky, who took the stage with his producer Alice Austen to describe the frenzy of trying to shoot their film for a quarter of their original budget.
“If someone had asked us a year ago if we’d like to show our film in Macau, we’d have said man, you’re out of your mind,” he laughed, before thanking the festival. “This is such a gathering of minds and intellects and true lovers of cinema, which is very rare. You’ve truly crafted a one-of-a-kind global event.
“This film shouldn’t have existed because there were so many obstacles. Everything was a miracle. Us being here is an utter miracle,” said Mikhanovsky, who took the stage with his producer Alice Austen to describe the frenzy of trying to shoot their film for a quarter of their original budget.
“If someone had asked us a year ago if we’d like to show our film in Macau, we’d have said man, you’re out of your mind,” he laughed, before thanking the festival. “This is such a gathering of minds and intellects and true lovers of cinema, which is very rare. You’ve truly crafted a one-of-a-kind global event.
- 12/10/2019
- by Rebecca Davis
- Variety Film + TV
Hollywood loves to imitate success: Superhero movies, remakes, sequels. However, it’s been almost 33 years since Marlee Matlin won her Oscar for “Children of a Lesser God.” So why haven’t studio executives demanded more actors with disabilities to play characters with disabilities?
Since 1988, one-third of Oscar’s 30 lead actor winners were portraying a character with a disability, from Dustin Hoffman through Eddie Redmayne. That’s 10 in just one category. In contrast, there have been only two winning actors with disabilities — two! — in Oscar’s entire 91 years: Harold Russell and Matlin.
This column was designed to put current Oscar hopefuls into historical context. But after Russell and Matlin, there are no more names to cite.
Hollywood stepped up its push for inclusion/diversity in 2015, and this year’s Oscar race includes more black and female filmmakers than ever before. However, there are very few films featuring people with disabilities (or...
Since 1988, one-third of Oscar’s 30 lead actor winners were portraying a character with a disability, from Dustin Hoffman through Eddie Redmayne. That’s 10 in just one category. In contrast, there have been only two winning actors with disabilities — two! — in Oscar’s entire 91 years: Harold Russell and Matlin.
This column was designed to put current Oscar hopefuls into historical context. But after Russell and Matlin, there are no more names to cite.
Hollywood stepped up its push for inclusion/diversity in 2015, and this year’s Oscar race includes more black and female filmmakers than ever before. However, there are very few films featuring people with disabilities (or...
- 12/4/2019
- by Tim Gray
- Variety Film + TV
Two dark and unruly films released by A24, Robert Eggers’ “The Lighthouse” and the Safdie brothers’ “Uncut Gems,” led all films in nominations for the 2020 Film Independent Spirit Awards, Film Independent announced on Thursday.
In the Best Feature category, “Uncut Gems” was joined by Lulu Wang’s “The Farewell,” Terrence Malick’s “A Hidden Life,” Chinonye Chukwu’s “Clemency” and Noah Baumbach’s “Marriage Story.”
“Uncut Gems” was the only film nominated in both the Best Feature and Best Director categories, though “Marriage Story” was nominated in the former category and was also voted the special John Cassavetes Award, which goes to a film’s director, cast and casting director.
Also Read: 'Marriage Story,' 'The Farewell,' 'Uncut Gems' Top Gotham Award Nominations
“Honey Boy” and “Give Me Liberty” received four nominations each, while “Hustlers,” “Clemency” and “Luce” received three.
As usual, the Spirit Awards’ system of...
In the Best Feature category, “Uncut Gems” was joined by Lulu Wang’s “The Farewell,” Terrence Malick’s “A Hidden Life,” Chinonye Chukwu’s “Clemency” and Noah Baumbach’s “Marriage Story.”
“Uncut Gems” was the only film nominated in both the Best Feature and Best Director categories, though “Marriage Story” was nominated in the former category and was also voted the special John Cassavetes Award, which goes to a film’s director, cast and casting director.
Also Read: 'Marriage Story,' 'The Farewell,' 'Uncut Gems' Top Gotham Award Nominations
“Honey Boy” and “Give Me Liberty” received four nominations each, while “Hustlers,” “Clemency” and “Luce” received three.
As usual, the Spirit Awards’ system of...
- 11/21/2019
- by Brian Welk and Steve Pond
- The Wrap
When disability lifestyle influencer Lauren "Lolo" Spencer was first approached about taking on a role in the film Give Me Liberty, there were plenty of unique qualities about the story to consider before saying yes.
Kirill Mikhanovsky and Alice Austen's script about a medical transport driver named Vic who speeds through the streets of Milwaukee amidst riots, trying to pick up and drop off scheduled clients while also transporting his Russian grandfather and émigré friends to a funeral, is chaotic in every sense of the word.
Yet it wasn't the dark comedy or the spiral of storylines ...
Kirill Mikhanovsky and Alice Austen's script about a medical transport driver named Vic who speeds through the streets of Milwaukee amidst riots, trying to pick up and drop off scheduled clients while also transporting his Russian grandfather and émigré friends to a funeral, is chaotic in every sense of the word.
Yet it wasn't the dark comedy or the spiral of storylines ...
- 11/13/2019
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
When disability lifestyle influencer Lauren "Lolo" Spencer was first approached about taking on a role in the film Give Me Liberty, there were plenty of unique qualities about the story to consider before saying yes.
Kirill Mikhanovsky and Alice Austen's script about a medical transport driver named Vic who speeds through the streets of Milwaukee amidst riots, trying to pick up and drop off scheduled clients while also transporting his Russian grandfather and émigré friends to a funeral, is chaotic in every sense of the word.
Yet it wasn't the dark comedy or the spiral of storylines ...
Kirill Mikhanovsky and Alice Austen's script about a medical transport driver named Vic who speeds through the streets of Milwaukee amidst riots, trying to pick up and drop off scheduled clients while also transporting his Russian grandfather and émigré friends to a funeral, is chaotic in every sense of the word.
Yet it wasn't the dark comedy or the spiral of storylines ...
- 11/13/2019
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Exclusive: Give Me Liberty filmmakers Alice Austen and Kirill Mikhanovsky have signed with Paradigm.
Austen, who was previously represented in the Theater division, co-wrote the feature with Mikhanovsky, which is based on his own personal experiences. The film, directed by Mikhanovsky, follows Vic, a young Russian immigrant who drives a medical transport van for people with disabilities in Milwaukee, over the course of one chaotic day. It features experienced actors and nonprofessionals in a darkly comedic portrait of marginalized individuals searching for the American dream in a struggling city. The film bowed earlier this year at Sundance and screened at the Directors’ Fortnight section of the Cannes Film Festival. Music Box Films acquired all U.S. rights to the film and was released in August. It earned actor Chris Galust a nomination for Breakthrough Actor at this year’s Gotham Awards.
Mikhanovsky’s film Sonhos de Peixe won the Prix...
Austen, who was previously represented in the Theater division, co-wrote the feature with Mikhanovsky, which is based on his own personal experiences. The film, directed by Mikhanovsky, follows Vic, a young Russian immigrant who drives a medical transport van for people with disabilities in Milwaukee, over the course of one chaotic day. It features experienced actors and nonprofessionals in a darkly comedic portrait of marginalized individuals searching for the American dream in a struggling city. The film bowed earlier this year at Sundance and screened at the Directors’ Fortnight section of the Cannes Film Festival. Music Box Films acquired all U.S. rights to the film and was released in August. It earned actor Chris Galust a nomination for Breakthrough Actor at this year’s Gotham Awards.
Mikhanovsky’s film Sonhos de Peixe won the Prix...
- 10/24/2019
- by Dino-Ray Ramos
- Deadline Film + TV
Chicago – Moving from writing plays for the stage to writing for film may seem like a natural transition. But at the roots in each of these separate storytelling forms there are different ways of formulating the connection between dialogue and visuals. Alice Austen made this transition when she wrote – with director Kirill Mikhanovsky – the story and screenplay for “Give Me Liberty.”
Drive, He Said: Inside the Med Van in ‘Give Me Liberty’
Photo credit: Music Box Films
“Give Me Liberty” involves medical transport driver Vic (Chris Galust), who is perpetually late for his mostly handicapped clients, but it’s not his fault. Roads are closed for a protest, and no one else can shuttle his Russian grandfather and émigré friends to a funeral. The new route uproots his scheduled clients, particularly Tracy (Lauren “Lolo” Spencer in a breakout performance), a vibrant young woman with Als. As the day goes from hectic to off-the-rails,...
Drive, He Said: Inside the Med Van in ‘Give Me Liberty’
Photo credit: Music Box Films
“Give Me Liberty” involves medical transport driver Vic (Chris Galust), who is perpetually late for his mostly handicapped clients, but it’s not his fault. Roads are closed for a protest, and no one else can shuttle his Russian grandfather and émigré friends to a funeral. The new route uproots his scheduled clients, particularly Tracy (Lauren “Lolo” Spencer in a breakout performance), a vibrant young woman with Als. As the day goes from hectic to off-the-rails,...
- 9/19/2019
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Female representation both in front of and behind the camera improved on TV programs in 2018-19, according to the latest “Boxed In” report released Wednesday by the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film at San Diego State University.
Of all the projects produced for television, the study showed that women accounted for 31% of all creators, directors, writers, executive producers, producers, editors and directors of photography, the highest percentage in the study’s history. The previous high was 28% in 2016-17.
When it came to onscreen characters, females comprised 45% of all television speaking roles during that same period. However, Martha Lauzen, the Center’s executive director, noted that while gains were made across the board, female representation still lags behind their male counterparts.
Also Read: Lolo Spencer, Alice Austen on Breaking Stereotypes at Power Women San Francisco (Video)
“It is heartening to see moderate but widespread gains for...
Of all the projects produced for television, the study showed that women accounted for 31% of all creators, directors, writers, executive producers, producers, editors and directors of photography, the highest percentage in the study’s history. The previous high was 28% in 2016-17.
When it came to onscreen characters, females comprised 45% of all television speaking roles during that same period. However, Martha Lauzen, the Center’s executive director, noted that while gains were made across the board, female representation still lags behind their male counterparts.
Also Read: Lolo Spencer, Alice Austen on Breaking Stereotypes at Power Women San Francisco (Video)
“It is heartening to see moderate but widespread gains for...
- 9/4/2019
- by Tim Baysinger
- The Wrap
Give Me Liberty director Kirill Mikhanovsky with producer/co-writer Alice Austen: "We didn't have the title for a very long time. In the process of the writing of scenes and simple plots, we're talking about more profound things, philosophizing, if you will." Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
Kirill Mikhanovsky and Alice Austen joined me in New York for an in-depth conversation on their madcap adventure Give Me Liberty, shot by Wyatt Garfield (Kent Jones's Diane), starring Chris Galust, Maxim Stoyanov, and Lauren 'Lolo' Spencer, with Arkady Basin, Zoya Makhlina, Darya Ekamasova, Sheryl Sims-Daniels, Atavia Gold Star, Steve Wolski, and Josette Daniels.
Lolo Spencer in New York for Give Me Liberty Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
We discussed how Maxim Stoyanov kept saying "Leonardo DiCaprio dies at the end of Titanic!", the evolution of the screenplay, Karl Ove Knausgaard and Alexis de Tocqueville, the determination it took to make Give Me Liberty, and...
Kirill Mikhanovsky and Alice Austen joined me in New York for an in-depth conversation on their madcap adventure Give Me Liberty, shot by Wyatt Garfield (Kent Jones's Diane), starring Chris Galust, Maxim Stoyanov, and Lauren 'Lolo' Spencer, with Arkady Basin, Zoya Makhlina, Darya Ekamasova, Sheryl Sims-Daniels, Atavia Gold Star, Steve Wolski, and Josette Daniels.
Lolo Spencer in New York for Give Me Liberty Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
We discussed how Maxim Stoyanov kept saying "Leonardo DiCaprio dies at the end of Titanic!", the evolution of the screenplay, Karl Ove Knausgaard and Alexis de Tocqueville, the determination it took to make Give Me Liberty, and...
- 9/2/2019
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
“Give Me Liberty” isn’t the easiest film to describe in one sentence. But its producer, Alice Austen, and lead actress, Lolo Spencer, knew it was exactly the kind of film that needed to be told — even when studios and financiers wouldn’t support them.
“We were told that we were unmarketable, undistributable, unreleasable,” Austen said at TheWrap’s Power Women Sf event on Monday evening, quoting detractors who said “Give Me Liberty” would never make it to Sundance or Cannes.
The film follows a disability transport driver in Milwaukee who, accompanied by a group of octogenarian Russian immigrants, must pick up a young woman in a wheelchair on the other side of town amidst protests in the city. “Give Me Liberty” eventually went on to premiere at Sundance and was unanimously chosen to participate in Cannes.
Also Read: Power Women Summit 2019 Welcomes Chrissy Metz, Amazon's Jennifer Salke and...
“We were told that we were unmarketable, undistributable, unreleasable,” Austen said at TheWrap’s Power Women Sf event on Monday evening, quoting detractors who said “Give Me Liberty” would never make it to Sundance or Cannes.
The film follows a disability transport driver in Milwaukee who, accompanied by a group of octogenarian Russian immigrants, must pick up a young woman in a wheelchair on the other side of town amidst protests in the city. “Give Me Liberty” eventually went on to premiere at Sundance and was unanimously chosen to participate in Cannes.
Also Read: Power Women Summit 2019 Welcomes Chrissy Metz, Amazon's Jennifer Salke and...
- 8/28/2019
- by J. Clara Chan
- The Wrap
Give Me Liberty star Lolo Spencer: "I want to be a symbol of representation. I want to represent the community authentically, the black community, womanhood, and being a person with a disability." Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
In Kirill Mikhanovsky's unparalleled absurdly hilarious and decisive Give Me Liberty, co-written with Alice Austen, shot by Wyatt Garfield (Kent Jones's Diane), Lauren 'Lolo' Spencer's character Tracy is the voice of reason.
Vic (Chris Galust) is the driver of a medical van in Milwaukee. This particular day, nothing works as planned. His grandpa (Arkady Basin) insists on cooking his idiosyncratic chicken dish for breakfast in the home, where he lives with a group of emigre Russians his age. One of them, Lilya, had recently died, and there is no ride to the cemetery, so Vic has to step in and drive the rambunctious gaggle to the funeral, combining this with the scheduled...
In Kirill Mikhanovsky's unparalleled absurdly hilarious and decisive Give Me Liberty, co-written with Alice Austen, shot by Wyatt Garfield (Kent Jones's Diane), Lauren 'Lolo' Spencer's character Tracy is the voice of reason.
Vic (Chris Galust) is the driver of a medical van in Milwaukee. This particular day, nothing works as planned. His grandpa (Arkady Basin) insists on cooking his idiosyncratic chicken dish for breakfast in the home, where he lives with a group of emigre Russians his age. One of them, Lilya, had recently died, and there is no ride to the cemetery, so Vic has to step in and drive the rambunctious gaggle to the funeral, combining this with the scheduled...
- 8/26/2019
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Brittany Runs a Marathon jumps into five New York and Los Angeles theaters this weekend ahead of a steady sprint nationwide in September. Amazon Studios picked up the title, starring Jillian Bell, following its Sundance premiere earlier this year. Fellow Sundancer Give Me Liberty from the festival’s Next section heads to select locations via Music Box Films, while IFC Films is opening literary drama-romance Vita & Virginia exclusively in Manhattan ahead of its L.A. bow and on-demand launch next week. Also in theaters as the summer vacation season begins its wind-down are horror film Tigers Are Not Afraid from Shudder and drama Hot Air with Neve Campbell, Steve Coogan and Judith Light via Freestyle Releasing.
Additional limited releases include Roadside Attractions’ Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles and Ammo Content’s Becoming Burlesque.
Brittany Runs a Marathon
Director-writer: Paul Downs Colaizzo
Cast: Jillian Bell, Michaela Watkins, Utkarsh Ambudkar, Lil Rel Howery,...
Additional limited releases include Roadside Attractions’ Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles and Ammo Content’s Becoming Burlesque.
Brittany Runs a Marathon
Director-writer: Paul Downs Colaizzo
Cast: Jillian Bell, Michaela Watkins, Utkarsh Ambudkar, Lil Rel Howery,...
- 8/23/2019
- by Brian Brooks
- Deadline Film + TV
May 15
– NewFest and NYC Pride, the official host of WorldPride 2019 | Stonewall 50, in partnership with Sva Theatre, announced its multi-day lineup of cinema and in-depth conversations for the 2019 edition of OutCinema from June 17 – June 19.
Each night features specially curated screenings followed by Q&As with the filmmakers and cast along with open bar after-parties. The three-day format encompasses the diversity of voices and perspectives within the Lgbtqia+ community while celebrating and commemorating the community’s commitment to our history.
“With the success of last year’s multi-day format for OutCinema, we’re thrilled to continue with the same structure for WorldPride 2019 | Stonewall 50,” said NYC Pride’s Executive Director, Chris Frederick, in an official statement. “This year’s film selections focus on diverse perspectives from our vibrant Lgbtqia+ community.”
“Given the momentous occasion of WorldPride 2019 | Stonewall 50, we’re delighted to showcases stories from New York City to a global audience with ‘Adam’ and ‘Wig,...
– NewFest and NYC Pride, the official host of WorldPride 2019 | Stonewall 50, in partnership with Sva Theatre, announced its multi-day lineup of cinema and in-depth conversations for the 2019 edition of OutCinema from June 17 – June 19.
Each night features specially curated screenings followed by Q&As with the filmmakers and cast along with open bar after-parties. The three-day format encompasses the diversity of voices and perspectives within the Lgbtqia+ community while celebrating and commemorating the community’s commitment to our history.
“With the success of last year’s multi-day format for OutCinema, we’re thrilled to continue with the same structure for WorldPride 2019 | Stonewall 50,” said NYC Pride’s Executive Director, Chris Frederick, in an official statement. “This year’s film selections focus on diverse perspectives from our vibrant Lgbtqia+ community.”
“Given the momentous occasion of WorldPride 2019 | Stonewall 50, we’re delighted to showcases stories from New York City to a global audience with ‘Adam’ and ‘Wig,...
- 5/15/2019
- by Indiewire Staff
- Indiewire
Distributor plans theatrical release this summer for dark comedy.
Music Box Films has acquired Us rights to Kirill Mikhanovsky’s Give Me Liberty, which screens in Directors’ Fortnight and has been trimmed by 15 minutes from the original version that screened in Sundance.
The film follows a young Russian immigrant over the course of one day as he drives a medical transport van for people with disabilities in Milwaukee. Alice Austen wrote the screenplay and produced.
Music Box plans a theatrical release this summer on the dark comedy, which will receive its New York premiere in June as the Centerpiece film at BAMcinemaFest.
Music Box Films has acquired Us rights to Kirill Mikhanovsky’s Give Me Liberty, which screens in Directors’ Fortnight and has been trimmed by 15 minutes from the original version that screened in Sundance.
The film follows a young Russian immigrant over the course of one day as he drives a medical transport van for people with disabilities in Milwaukee. Alice Austen wrote the screenplay and produced.
Music Box plans a theatrical release this summer on the dark comedy, which will receive its New York premiere in June as the Centerpiece film at BAMcinemaFest.
- 5/14/2019
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Music Box Films has acquired all U.S. rights to Give Me Liberty, the film from writer-director Kirill Mikhanovsky that bowed this year at Sundance and which next screens this weekend at the Directors’ Fortnight section of the Cannes Film Festival. The Cannes cut is 15 minutes shorter than pic’s Park City debut, and Music Box plans a summer 2019 theatrical release ahead of a digital bow.
The pic — co-written by Mikhanovsky (Fish Dreams) and Alice Austen and based on Mikhanovsky’s personal experiences — follows Vic, a young Russian immigrant who drives a medical transport van for people with disabilities in Milwaukee, over the course of one chaotic day. It features experienced actors and nonprofessionals in a darkly comedic portrait of marginalized individuals searching for the American dream in a struggling city.
“Kirill and Alice have created a visceral and compassionate film with an unconventional comic streak that uniquely captures the...
The pic — co-written by Mikhanovsky (Fish Dreams) and Alice Austen and based on Mikhanovsky’s personal experiences — follows Vic, a young Russian immigrant who drives a medical transport van for people with disabilities in Milwaukee, over the course of one chaotic day. It features experienced actors and nonprofessionals in a darkly comedic portrait of marginalized individuals searching for the American dream in a struggling city.
“Kirill and Alice have created a visceral and compassionate film with an unconventional comic streak that uniquely captures the...
- 5/13/2019
- by Patrick Hipes
- Deadline Film + TV
Music Box Films has acquired the U.S. rights to “Give Me Liberty,” Variety has learned. The deal comes on the eve of the film’s international premiere in the Directors’ Fortnight section at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.
“Give Me Liberty” tracks a day in the life of Vic, a young Russian immigrant and medical transport driver for people with disabilities in Milwaukee. The movie is from writer-director Kirill Mikhanovsky and writer-producer Alice Austen. “Give Me Liberty” draws on Mikhanovsky’s personal experiences.
It debuted to strong reviews at Sundance, and will appear in tighter form in Cannes, with 15 minutes cut from its original two-hour-plus running time. The movie will have its New York premiere in June as the Centerpiece film at BAMcinemaFest. Music Box plans a theatrical rollout later this summer followed by a release on home entertainment platforms.
“Kirill and Alice have created a visceral and...
“Give Me Liberty” tracks a day in the life of Vic, a young Russian immigrant and medical transport driver for people with disabilities in Milwaukee. The movie is from writer-director Kirill Mikhanovsky and writer-producer Alice Austen. “Give Me Liberty” draws on Mikhanovsky’s personal experiences.
It debuted to strong reviews at Sundance, and will appear in tighter form in Cannes, with 15 minutes cut from its original two-hour-plus running time. The movie will have its New York premiere in June as the Centerpiece film at BAMcinemaFest. Music Box plans a theatrical rollout later this summer followed by a release on home entertainment platforms.
“Kirill and Alice have created a visceral and...
- 5/13/2019
- by Brent Lang
- Variety Film + TV
Vic, a charismatic 25-year-old Russian-American immigrant cut from the same cloth as a young Rocky Balboa, has a heart of gold and the cheekbones of a Bruce Weber model. In another movie, this affable young man would almost certainly be the romantic lead, saddled with girl trouble or a small-time score of some kind — but not in “Give Me Liberty,” the second feature from Russia-born director Kirill Mikhanovsky (credited here by his last name alone), whose debut, “Sonhos de Peixe,” was a prize winner in Cannes’ Critics Week a dozen year ago.
This warm, fiercely independent comedy-drama eschews anything resembling formula in favor of a boisterous and freewheeling joyride drawn from Mikhanovsky’s own experience as the driver of a wheelchair-accessible transport vehicle. Shortly after moving from Moscow to Milwaukee (and several years before becoming a professional filmmaker), Mikhanovsky was entrusted with one of those enormous, elevator-equipped vans designed to...
This warm, fiercely independent comedy-drama eschews anything resembling formula in favor of a boisterous and freewheeling joyride drawn from Mikhanovsky’s own experience as the driver of a wheelchair-accessible transport vehicle. Shortly after moving from Moscow to Milwaukee (and several years before becoming a professional filmmaker), Mikhanovsky was entrusted with one of those enormous, elevator-equipped vans designed to...
- 1/25/2019
- by Peter Debruge
- Variety Film + TV
Milwaukee-set comedy opens Sundance’s Next section.
Wild Bunch has acquired international rights to Russian-American filmmaker Kirill Mikhanovsky’s English-language comedy drama Give Me Liberty ahead of its world premiere as the opening film of Sundance’s Next section today (January 24).
The Paris-based sales company will handle all international territories while CAA is overseeing the Us.
Set against the backdrop of the midwest city of Milwaukee, the film revolves around a Russian immigrant who breaks the law and risks his job as a driver of medical transportation for people with disabilities when he agrees to ferry his grandfather and a...
Wild Bunch has acquired international rights to Russian-American filmmaker Kirill Mikhanovsky’s English-language comedy drama Give Me Liberty ahead of its world premiere as the opening film of Sundance’s Next section today (January 24).
The Paris-based sales company will handle all international territories while CAA is overseeing the Us.
Set against the backdrop of the midwest city of Milwaukee, the film revolves around a Russian immigrant who breaks the law and risks his job as a driver of medical transportation for people with disabilities when he agrees to ferry his grandfather and a...
- 1/24/2019
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- ScreenDaily
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