February 4, 2020
PALM SPRINGS Director and Writer Talk Inspiration, Collaboration and Meeting at the AFI Conservatory
AFI alumni Max Barbakow (Directing, Class of 2015) and Andy Siara (Screenwriting, Class of 2015) just sold their debut feature film, PALM SPRINGS, breaking the record for the biggest sale ever at Sundance – by 69 cents. PALM SPRINGS stars Andy Samberg and Cristin Milioti as two wedding guests stuck in an endless time loop….
February 4, 2020
Production Designer Yong Ok Lee on her Sundance films MINARI and THE FAREWELL
Following her work on the critically-acclaimed THE FAREWELL – a 2019 AFI AWARDS recipient, AFI alum Yong Ok Lee (Production Design, Class of 2013) returned to Sundance for the second year in a row with MINARI – which won the U.S. dramatic grand jury prize and the dramatic audience award at this year’s festival. The film, inspired by director…
January 24, 2020
AFI Announces Screen Australia Onbass 2020 Fellow
AFI announced today that Eleanora Steiner, an Australian-Peruvian production designer, will be this year’s recipient of the Screen Australia Onbass Fellowship, a full-tuition scholarship to attend the AFI Conservatory. Last year’s recipient Meg White is currently a Cinematography Fellow at the Conservatory. Steiner was introduced today as this year’s Screen Australia Onbass Fellow at the…
January 21, 2020
AFI Directing Alum Zoé Wittock on her Sundance Feature JUMBO
AFI Alum Zoé Wittock (Directing, Class of 2010) is set to debut her feature film JUMBO at Sundance 2020. The film follows a shy young woman who develops an intense relationship with the amusement park ride. Wittock joins over 25 other AFI Alumni with projects at Sundance 2020. Watch Wittock discuss the inspiration for her…
January 16, 2020
AFI Alumni Projects to Screen at SXSW 2020
SXSW Film Festival announced their 2020 lineup and we’re proud of the many alumni who will be representing the AFI Conservatory and keeping it weird in Austin this March. Here is the full list of the alumni and their projects that will be screening at SXSW 2020: BE WATER Cinematographer: Caleb Heller (AFI Class…
January 15, 2020
AFI Directing Workshop for Women Announces New Class of 2021
Congratulations to the eight new participants selected for the AFI Directing Workshop for Women Class of 2021: Michelle Krusiec, April Maxey, Mary Angélica Molina, April Moreau, Kelly Pike, Jessica Shields, Lucretia Stinnette and Em Weinstein. “We are thrilled to welcome these eight artists into the AFI family and can’t wait to see their unique stories…
January 13, 2020
AFI Alums earn Oscar Noms
On January 13, 2020, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the nominees for the 92nd Academy Awards®. Congratulations to the following AFI Conservatory alumni for their Oscar nominations: Scott Silver (AFI Class of 1992) Best Adapted Screenplay – JOKER Robert Richardson (AFI Class of 1979) Best Cinematography – ONCE UPON A TIME…IN…
January 7, 2020
AFI Alum Scott Silver Scores BAFTA and WGA Nominations for JOKER
Congratulations to AFI alum and Academy Award®-nominated screenwriter Scott Silver who received a BAFTA nomination and a WGA nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay for co-writing JOKER, alongside writer/director Todd Phillips. This marks his second BAFTA and WGA nominations, after he was nominated for Best Original Screenplay for THE FIGHTER in 2011. JOKER, which premiered at…
December 18, 2019
Alex Michaelides On Writing “The Silent Patient,” Uma Thurman’s Advice & Plan B Optioning the Movie Rights
When Alex Michaelides (AFI Class of 2004) released his first novel “The Silent Patient” earlier this year, he not only had a taut and spellbinding psychological thriller on his hands, but also a hit novel that debuted at #1 on The New York Times Best Sellers List. Michaelides studied English literature at Cambridge University, received…
December 17, 2019
AFI Alumni Shortlisted for Academy Awards
Congratulations to the AFI thesis film MILLER & SON which has been shortlisted for an Academy Award® in the Live Action Short Film category! It was just two months ago that MILLER AND SON director Asher Jelinsky (AFI Class of 2018) won a Gold Medal at the Student Academy Awards®. And STAY CLOSE, a labor…
December 13, 2019
Television Academy Honors AFI Conservatory Thesis Films
Another proud moment for AFI Conservatory Alumni! Two AFI thesis films – THEY WON’T LAST and BALLON – received nominations from the Television Academy’s 40th Annual College Television Awards for excellence in college student-produced films. And the AFI film FORT IRWIN was named as the recipient of the 2020 Loreen Arbus Focus on Disability Scholarship….
December 12, 2019
AFI Alumni Receive Grants for Directing and Screenwriting Achievement
Congratulations to the recipients of the 2019 AFI Alumni Awards! AFI Alumni Awards, which recognize outstanding achievement in directing and screenwriting, were awarded to the following members of the Class of 2018 during a private alumni reception at this year’s AFI FEST presented by Audi. Omer Ben-Shachar received a Richard P. Rogers Spirit of Excellence…
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