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Sundance || ||

'The East': How Marling & Batmanglij's Dumpster-Diving Freegan Summer Inspired The Eco-Anarchist Sundance Thriller

'The East': How Marling & Batmanglij's Dumpster-Diving Freegan Summer Inspired The Eco-Anarchist Sundance Thriller

Two Sundances ago Brit Marling mesmerized as the leader of a cult being infiltrated by two would-be documentarians in Zal Batmanglij's Sound Of My Voice; this year she returns to Park City as the infiltrator, playing a corporate operative who goes undercover within a volatile anti-capitalist eco-anarchist group in Batmanglij's sophomore feature, The East. Hit the jump for a peek at the tense first trailer and let Ellen Page's steely-pixie voice put you on edge.
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Sundance || ||

Sundance Names 10 2013 Pics & Cities For Traveling Festival

Sundance Names 10 2013 Pics & Cities For Traveling Festival

Can't make it out to Park City, UT for the Sundance Film Festival this year? Let Sundance come to you. The Sundance Institute announced today 10 independent cities that will screen selections from the 2013 Sundance Film Festival this year with the filmmaker present. Ten filmmakers will travel to one of the following cities: Ann Arbor, MI; Boston, MA; Brooklyn, NY; Chicago, IL; Houston, TX; Los Angeles, CA; Nashville, TN; Orlando, FL; San Francisco, CA; and Tucson, AZ.

"Sundance Film Festival USA celebrates the theaters and audiences that are an integral part of supporting and encouraging the work of independent filmmakers," said Sundance President and Founder Robert Redford. "By extending the Festival to these 10 cities, we will create a larger shared experience and dialogue around the issues of our time, as explored in these films."

[Related: Sundance Film Festival Reveals 2013 U.S. & World Competition Slate]

Titles and locations follow with descriptions and information provided by Sundance Institute:

The East / U.S.A. (Director: Zal Batmanglij, Screenwriters: Zal Batmanglij, Brit Marling) — An operative for an elite private intelligence firm goes into deep cover to infiltrate a mysterious anarchist collective attacking major corporations.  Bent on apprehending these fugitives, she finds her loyalty tested as her feelings grow for the group's charismatic leader. Cast: Brit Marling, Alexander Skarsgård, Ellen Page, Toby Kebbell, Shiloh Fernandez, Patricia Clarkson. Ann Arbor, MI – The Michigan Theatre.

The Lifeguard / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Liz W. Garcia) — A former valedictorian quits her reporter job in New York and returns to the place she last felt happy: her childhood home in Connecticut. She gets work as a lifeguard and starts a dangerous relationship with a troubled teenager. Cast: Kristen Bell, Mamie Gummer, Martin Starr, Alex Shaffer, Amy Madigan, David Lambert. Boston, MA – Coolidge Corner Theatre www.coolidge.org

Kill Your Darlings / U.S.A. (Director: John Krokidas, Screenwriters: Austin Bunn, John Krokidas) — An untold story of murder that brought together a young Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac and William Burroughs at Columbia University in 1944, providing the spark that led to the birth of an entire generation – their Beat revolution. Cast: Daniel Radcliffe, Dane DeHann, Ben Foster, Michael C. Hall, Jack Huston, Elizabeth Olsen. Brooklyn, NY – BAM

Touchy Feely / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Lynn Shelton) — A massage therapist is unable to do her job when stricken with a mysterious and sudden aversion to bodily contact. Meanwhile, her uptight brother's foundering dental practice receives new life when clients seek out his “healing touch.” Cast: Rosemarie DeWitt, Allison Janney, Ron Livingston, Scoot McNairy, Ellen Page, Josh Pais. Chicago, IL – Music Box Theatre

[Related: Sundance Film Festival Unveils Star-Studded Premieres & Documentary Premieres Lineup]

Ain't Them Bodies Saints / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: David Lowery) — The tale of an outlaw who escapes from prison and sets out across the Texas hills to reunite with his wife and the daughter he has never met. Cast: Rooney Mara, Casey Affleck, Ben Foster, Nate Parker, Keith Carradine. Houston, TX – Sundance Cinemas Houston.

Afternoon Delight / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Jill Soloway) —  In this sexy, dark comedy, a lost L.A. housewife puts her idyllic hipster life in jeopardy when she tries to rescue a stripper by taking her in as a live-in nanny. Cast: Kathryn Hahn, Juno Temple, Josh Radnor, Jane Lynch. Los Angeles, CA – Sundance Sunset Cinemas .

Mother of George / U.S.A. (Director: Andrew Dosunmu, Screenwriter: Darci Picoult) — A story about a woman willing to do anything and risk everything for her marriage. Cast: Isaach De Bankolé, Danai Gurira, Tony Okungbowa, Yaya Alafia, Bukky Ajayi. Nashville, TN – Belcourt Theatre.

A.C.O.D. / U.S.A. (Director: Stuart Zicherman, Screenwriters: Ben Karlin, Stuart Zicherman) — Carter is a well-adjusted Adult Child of Divorce. So he thinks.  When he discovers he was part of a divorce study as a child, it wreaks havoc on his family and forces him to face his chaotic past. Cast: Adam Scott, Richard Jenkins, Catherine O'Hara, Amy Poehler, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Clark Duke. Orlando, FL – Enzian Theater.

In a World... / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Lake Bell) — An underachieving vocal coach is motivated by her father, the king of movie-trailer voice-overs, to pursue her aspirations of becoming a voiceover star. Amidst pride, sexism and family dysfunction, she sets out to change the voice of a generation. Cast: Lake Bell, Demetri Martin, Rob Corddry, Michaela Watkins, Ken Marino, Fred Melamed. San Francisco, CA – Sundance Kabuki Cinemas.

The Spectacular Now / U.S.A. (Director: James Ponsoldt, Screenwriters: Scott Neustadter, Michael H. Weber) — Sutter is a high school senior who lives for the moment; Aimee is the introvert he attempts to "save." As their relationship deepens, the lines between right and wrong, friendship and love, and "saving" and corrupting become inextricably blurred. Cast: Miles Teller, Shailene Woodley, Brie Larson, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Kyle Chandler. Tucson, AZ – The Loft.

Review || ||

REVIEW: Sound of My Voice Asks You to Drink the Brit Marling Kool-Aid. Will You?

REVIEW: Sound of My Voice Asks You to Drink the Brit Marling Kool-Aid. Will You?

It’s hard to say whether Sound of My Voice is a wholly bogus and pretentious indie enterprise or a weirdly compelling bit of low-budget storytelling. Probably it’s a little of both – this is the kind of picture that may often make you snort audibly, even as you’re wondering how the heck it’s going to resolve itself. And ultimately, even if the payoff isn’t quite what it should be, the picture leaves a faint chill in its wake. You probably won’t feel totally shafted for sticking with it – maybe just a little punk’d.
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The Movieline Interview || ||

Brit Marling on Sound of My Voice, Guerrilla Filmmaking, and Not Waiting for Permission

Brit Marling on Sound of My Voice, Guerrilla Filmmaking, and Not Waiting for Permission

Sundance '11 darling Brit Marling is now a year and change removed from the stunning festival debut that made her one to watch thanks to two films she co-wrote, produced, and starred in: The moody sci-fi drama Another Earth, released last summer, and the mesmerizing Sound of My Voice. The latter film finally hits theaters this week, giving audiences a chance to see a different side of Marling: Earthy, enigmatic, dangerously charismatic, and -- as the leader of a cult amassing members in a basement in the Valley -- possibly from the future.
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Newswire || ||

WonderCon: Fox Searchlight Wants You to Join the Cult of Sound of My Voice

Sound of My Voice

Screening the first 12 minutes of Sound of My Voice and a dynamic new trailer, Fox Searchlight opened WonderCon 2012 with everything they've got -- footage, star/co-writer Brit Marling and director Zal Batmanglij, that viral secret handshake, and an in-character appearance by the film's cult members Klaus and Mel, who addressed the Anaheim Convention Center crowd with a pitch to join them on a spiritual journey. Their invitation: Join them at Booth #348 today, where they'll be happy to meet you, discuss their beloved leader from the year 2054, and "answer any questions and help you with your future."
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Adventures in Marketing || ||

Watch the First 12 Minutes of Sound of My Voice: Brit Marling and Cult Jam

Sound of My Voice

Festival darling Brit Marling burst onto the scene last summer with the sci-fi indie Another Earth (and will be seen in the upcoming fiscal thriller Arbitrage opposite Richard Gere and Susan Sarandon), but her turn as a mysterious cult leader in this April's Sound of My Voice is the more impressive introduction to the charismatic up and comer. Hit the jump to watch the first 10 minutes of Sound of My Voice, courtesy of Fox Searchlight, and see for yourself.
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Festivals || ||

Brit Marling on Sound of My Voice, DIY Filmmaking, and Her Dream Director Wish List

Brit Marling on Sound of My Voice, DIY Filmmaking, and Her Dream Director Wish List

Brit Marling studied economics at Georgetown and might have been an environmental activist or banker in another life if she hadn't answered the siren call of Los Angeles and moved west to risk it all as an actor. And what a payoff: having co-written, produced, and starred in two critically acclaimed films at Sundance (the sci-fi romance Another Earth and the wonderfully hard-to-define cult drama Sound of My Voice), Marling's smack dab in the middle of her well-deserved breakout moment. Movieline caught up with Marling at SXSW to discuss borderline illegal guerrilla filmmaking tricks, taking professional risks, and avoiding the "morally-corrupt swamp" that is Hollywood.

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Festival Coverage || ||

SXSW Buzz Report: Pee Paparazzi Goes Viral, Joe Swanberg Inspires Walkouts

SXSW is a fest that caters to alterna-sensibilities, so it's no surprise genre fare has done well thus far. Insidious scored high marks with the horror crowd, but The Kill List notched all-out raves from even mainstream press -- though the Conan O'Brien documentary Conan O'Brien Can't Stop contains enough rage and demon-exorcising to give both a run for their money. Meanwhile, Bellflower -- a Sundance entry in the Emerging Visions sidebar -- screens on Monday night, as does the Dance Dance Revolution thriller The FP. Yes, you read that right: a gang warfare film about Dance Dance Revolution. Don't you wish you were in Austin?

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