Short film Squirrel Island was one of our 10 Picks from the Aesthetica Short Film Festival 2017 for its striking combination of action-espionage tone and sweet, handcrafted animation. Equally compelling is the film’s origin story. We spoke with screenwriter, director, sculptor, animator and artist Astrid Goldsmith about the long journey to release, her motivations, and … Read more
CUFF (Calgary Underground Film Festival) 2025 Award Winners CUFF 2025 concluded on April 27, 2025, at the Globe Cinema in Calgary. The festival’s 2025 edition featured an adventurous lineup of 41 feature films, 45 short films, and eight special events — from live script readings and retro cartoon parties to found-footage presentations and a 007 … Read more
Paddington 2 (2017) Director: Paul King Screenwriters: Simon Farnaby, Paul King, Jon Croker Starring: Brendan Gleeson, Sally Hawkins, Ben Whishaw, Michael Gambon, Hugh Grant, Jim Broadbent, Hugh Bonneville, Julie Walters, Peter Capaldi When the first Paddington film arrived in 2014 it felt like a welcome relief: warm, carefully crafted and gently funny, reminding audiences that … Read more
Vulcanizadora and Joel Potrykus’ Uneasy Catharsis VULCANIZADORA Still | Courtesy of CUFF When I met with Joel Potrykus before a screening of Vulcanizadora at CUFF 2025, the conversation settled into the same deliberate, contemplative pace that defines his new film. Ten months into an extended festival run, Potrykus sounded almost indifferent about the push for … Read more
Super Mario Reportedly Headed to the Big Screen in Animated Film from Illumination and Universal According to a report in The Wall Street Journal, one of the most iconic video game characters ever created, Super Mario, is set to return to theaters in an animated feature produced by Illumination Entertainment, the studio behind the popular … Read more
Vampire Zombies…From Space!: Inside Mike Stasko’s Homage to 1950s B-Movies Still from Vampire Zombies…From Space! | Courtesy of CUFF In advance of its screening at the Calgary Underground Film Festival, I spoke with director Mike Stasko by Zoom about Vampire Zombies…From Space!, his loving black-and-white tribute to 1950s drive-in horror. Stasko joked that he was … Read more
On 1 November 2017, Hayley Squires, who won the British Independent Film Awards (BIFA) Best Newcomer in 2016, joined Maisie Williams of Game of Thrones to reveal the nominees for the 2017 British Independent Film Awards. The ceremony was scheduled for 10 December 2017 and was set to be hosted by writer and producer Mark … Read more
Intimacy, Estrangement, and the Crow: Chloé Robichaud on her Film, TWO WOMEN A Still from TWO WOMEN | Courtesy of CUFF The opening shot of Two Women settles on drifting snow, instantly placing the film in a recognizable Quebec winter. Inside their homes, women watch the world through windows and from behind doors — contained, … Read more
Thor: Ragnarok (2017) Director: Taika Waititi Screenwriter: Craig Kyle, Eric Pearson, Christopher L. Yost Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Cate Blanchett, Idris Elba, Jeff Goldblum, Tessa Thompson, Karl Urban, Mark Ruffalo, Anthony Hopkins, Taika Waititi When Taika Waititi, the New Zealand director behind What We Do in the Shadows (2014) and Hunt for the Wilderpeople … Read more
EBONY AND IVORY Intentionally Disrupts the “Biopic” Formula | Interview with Jim Hosking Still from EBONY AND IVORY | Courtesy of CUFF Ahead of the Canadian premiere of Ebony and Ivory at the Calgary Underground Film Festival on April 19, I spoke with director Jim Hosking over Zoom. Hosking returns to CUFF after opening the … Read more