The 91st Academy Awards Were Packed with Powerful Moments
Wow, 2018 gave an incredible class of movies. It was a year that moved, inspired, thrilled and challenged us in innovative ways. We have been celebrating these filmmakers each day, but last night’s Oscars ceremony shone a light on the astonishing diversity and power in storytelling over the past year. BlacKkKlansman, The Favourite, A Star is Born, Bohemian Rhapsody,
Oscars 2019: Four of Our Favorite Sequences
This week we’ve been taking a trip down recent memory lane. We’ve been sharing some of our favorite interviews with Oscar-nominees, which has reminded us of the sequences that made the year a special one in film. You know the way certain sequences walk out of the theater with you? Here are four scenes that did just that for us, playing in our minds long after the credits rolled.
The Casino Fight in Black Panther
Ryan Coogler’s groundbreaking Black Panther had so much going for there were any number of sequences that fit the bill.
How BlacKkKlansman‘s Oscar-Nominated Composer Channeled Jimi Hendrix
*In the run-up to this Sunday’s Oscars telecast, we’re sharing some of our favorite interviews with nominees.
Terence Blanchard landed on this year’s Best Original Score Oscar shortlist by crafting the stirring score for Spike Lee’s BlacKkKlansman. Based on a true story and set in 1971, the movie casts John David Washington as Ron Stallworth, a black cop who infiltrates the Ku Klux Klan with his Jewish colleague (Adam Driver) by impersonating a white supremacist over the phone.
Oscar Watch: How BlacKkKlansman‘s Composer Channeled Jimi Hendrix’s Iconic Riffs
Terence Blanchard landed on this year’s Best Original Score Oscar shortlist by crafting the stirring score for Spike Lee’s BlacKkKlansman. Based on a true story and set in 1971, the movie casts John David Washington as Ron Stallworth, a black cop who infiltrates the Ku Klux Klan with his Jewish colleague (Adam Driver) by impersonating a white supremacist over the phone. Blanchard, a jazz trumpeter who grew up in New Orleans alongside Wynton Marsalis,
Oscar Watch: BlacKkKlansman Hair and Makeup Designers on the Impact of Appearances
BlacKkKlansman was one of the most stirring films of the year with a chilling portrayal of hatred. In typical Spike Lee fashion, it was also funky, cool, and completely enthralling. The true story of dangerous prejudices and brave efforts to fight back was rooted in appearance. Some of the most monstrous of the characters masqueraded in a façade of normalcy.
“As far as the Klansmen, I wanted some of them to look like normal people and clean-cut,” makeup department head Martha Melendez said.
Behold David Ehrlich’s Epic Supercut of 2018’s Best Films
David Ehrlich has done it again. The maestro of the supercut is back with his always deeply satisfying year-end montage, connecting 25 of his year favorite films in one nearly 14-minute long video. Ehrlich’s supercuts are expertly edited, feature great music (a healthy dose A Star is Born‘s breakout star, a little-known musician named Lady Gaga, never hurts) and not only do they create pretty wonderful sequences from one film to another,
BlacKkKlansman Costume Designer Marci Rodgers on Dressing the Year’s Most Urgent Film
Costume designer Marci Rodgers was out of the country working on a movie when she got a call from Spike Lee. Rodgers and Lee worked together on his Netflix series (and adaptation from his feature film) She’s Gotta Have It, yet he was calling about a new project, a feature film based on an incredible true story about a black cop in Colorado Springs infiltrating a local chapter of the Ku Klux Klan in the 1970s.
How BlacKkKlansman‘s Production Designer Used the Power Dynamics of Race
BlacKkKlansman is a story of high stakes pushed to the absolute limit. Based on a remarkable true story, Ron Stallworth (John David Washington) was the first African American officer on the Colorado Springs police force. A tense undertaking in itself, Stallworth was not content with breaking barriers. He capitalized on the opportunity and initiated a dangerous undercover operation to infiltrate the KKK, stunning even his colleagues. Production designer Curt Beech tackled these complex dynamics in incredibly imaginative ways that layer meaning throughout the design in subtle,
See What all the Buzz is About in the First Trailer for Spike Lee’s BlacKkKlansman
Spike Lee’s BlacKkKlansman made waves at the Cannes Film Festival, where it has a good shot at taking home the Palme d’Or. Critics are hailing the film as both a hilarious and bracing, stylish and unnerving. In short, a Spike Lee joint, from an auteur who seems to be back at the top of his game. The first trailer will give you a peek at what all the buzz is about.
Lee’s film is based on Ron Stallworth’s book,
