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Tom Rothman Goes Indie While Juggling ‘Die Hard’ Start And ‘We Bought A Zoo’ Sneak

By MIKE FLEMING JR | Friday December 2, 2011 @ 2:03pm PSTTags: Ang Lee, Bruce Willis, Cameron Crowe, Gotham Awards, John Moore, Tilda Swinton, Tom Rothman
Mike Fleming

It wasn’t lost on many in the crowd of independent film distributors and agents at this week’s Gotham Awards that the whole evening seemed full of contradictions. Indie film is a down and dirty, low budget affair, and yet the event was held in the cavernous confines of Cipriani at 55 Wall Street, where attendees dined on filet mignon and champagne, just around the corner from the Occupy Wall Street crowd. No one personified this dichotomy more than Fox Filmed Entertainment co-chairman Tom Rothman, the only executive given a tribute award. Rothman’s roots are in the indie game, even though he now spends most of his time these days as the hands-on manager of big ticket films like A Good Day To Die Hard and readying the next installments of Rise of the Apes and X-Men: First Class and The Wolverine.

Rothman said he still has a soft spot for the indies, and he was touched by Ang Lee’s recollection of Rothman begging him not to “fry the kid” in Ice Storm, and then being supportive when Lee did it anyway, electrocuting Elijah Wood’s character in a gamble that worked out. Rothman said he felt like he’d come out on the winning side on another gamble, sneaking Cameron Crowe’s We Bought A Zoo all over the country. “I can’t recall any movie snuck like this a month early on a national wide basis, before the advertising hit,” Rothman said. He’s now  confident that the word of mouth will give the film a leg up during a brutal holiday period. “It’s a completely un-cynical film, something that is good for this time, given all that’s going on,” Rothman said. “It was a risky move, but we had many sellouts, and it’s a reminder you should never underestimate the power of emotion.”

On the big budget film front, Rothman told me that they have pushed the start date of the John Moore-directed A Good Day To Die Hard until the last week of April, to accommodate star Bruce Willis. They’re shooting in Budapest and Moscow but Rothman was certain they will still have the film ready for release Valentine’s Day, 2013. The series has always eschewed relying on visual effects, so the extra prep time will be helpful, said Rothman. He added that no decision has been made yet on who’ll play John McClane Jr., and they still haven’t done the tests that will determine who gets the job.

As for the Gotham Awards, it always feels like an unpolished event and it’s haunted by the fact that the industry crowd never stops talking at their tables, and winners never stop talking at the podium. This year’s hosts, Oliver Platt and Edie Falco, weren’t given much to work with and proved to be a bland teaming. The Spirit Awards are much better coordinated, with filmed comic bits and musical performances and a feeling of subversiveness. One thing that Gotham Award organizers might consider: beg Tilda Swinton to host. She took the stage to present an award, and made off the cuff observations that were hilarious. She’s a natural.

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Gotham Awards: ‘Tree Of Life,’ ‘Beginners’ Share Kudos For Best Feature

By MIKE FLEMING JR | Monday November 28, 2011 @ 7:23pm PSTTags: Beginners, Dee Rees, Felicity Jones, Girlfriend, Gotham Awards, Like Crazy, Pariah, Terrence Malick, The Tree of Life
Mike Fleming

Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life and Mike Mills’ Beginners shared the best feature award at Monday night’s 21st Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards. Other nominees for Best Feature were nominees were The Descendants, Meek’s Cutoff and Take Shelter. Girlfriend … Read More »

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Gotham Awards: ‘The Descendants’, ‘Martha Marcy May Marlene’, ‘Beginners’ And ‘Take Shelter’ Lead Nominations

By MIKE FLEMING JR | Thursday October 20, 2011 @ 7:17am PDTTags: Gotham Awards, IFP, Independent Filmmaker Project
Mike Fleming

New York, NY (October 20, 2011) – The Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP), the nation’s oldest and largest organization of independent filmmakers announced today the nominees for the Gotham Independent Film Awards™. Signaling the kick-off to the film awards season, IFP’s Gotham Independent Film Awards™ nominations were given to a total of 24 films across six competitive categories for Best Feature, Best Documentary, Breakthrough Director, Breakthrough Actor, Best Ensemble Performance, and Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You.

The Gotham Awards’ ceremony will be held on Monday, November 28th at Cipriani Wall Street. In addition to the competitive awards, Charlize Theron, Gary Oldman, David Cronenberg and Tom Rothman will each be presented with a career tribute.

As the first major awards ceremony of the film season, the Gotham Independent Film Awards™ provide critical early recognition and media attention to worthy independent films. Previous winners for Best Feature and Best Documentary include WINTER’S BONE (2010), THE OATH (2010), THE HURT LOCKER (2009), FOOD, INC (2009), FROZEN RIVER (2008) and TROUBLE THE WATER (2008). The awards are also unique for their ability to assist in catapulting award recipients prominently into national awards season attention, including recent winners and ultimate Oscar® contenders: feature winners WINTER’S BONE (2010) and THE HURT LOCKER (2009); Breakthrough Actors Melissa Leo (2008), Ellen Page (2007), Rinko Kikuchi (2006) and Amy Adams (2005).

Primary criteria for nomination consideration includes American (US-based or US-born directors and producers), feature-length films made with a point of view. Additional criteria include independently distributed films made with an economy of means. For a complete list of criteria, see http://gotham.ifp.org.

Selecting this year’s nominees were 21 film critics, journalists, and curators (see list below). Separate juries of writers, directors, actors, producers, editors and others directly involved in making films will determine final award recipients.

“The high caliber of this year’s Gotham Awards nominees’ work is truly remarkable,” said Joana Vicente, Executive Director of IFP. “This extraordinary group of filmmakers and talent, both established and new, are breaking barriers and finding fresh, innovative ways to engage audiences through unique storytelling. We’re passionate about shedding light on well deserved independent cinema and excited to begin what is sure to be a momentous awards season.”

The nominees for the 21st Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards are:

Best Feature

Beginners
Mike Mills, director; Leslie Urdang, Dean Vanech, Miranda de Pencier, Jay Van Hoy, Lars Knudsen, producers (Focus Features)

The Descendants
Alexander Payne, director; Jim Burke, Alexander Payne, Jim Taylor, producers (Fox Searchlight Pictures)

Meek’s Cutoff
Kelly Reichardt, director; Neil Kopp, Anish Savjani, Elizabeth Cuthrell, David Urrutia, producers (Oscilloscope Laboratories)

Take Shelter
Jeff Nichols, director; Tyler Davidson, Sophia Lin, producers (Sony Pictures Classics)

The Tree of Life
Terrence Malick, director; Sarah Green, Bill Pohlad, Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, Grant Hill, producers (Fox Searchlight Pictures)

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