With another three months having passed since our last Filmmaker Update post, our previously featured directors have been busy releasing TV series, picking up awards and going viral on social media. Below is a round-up of the latest news from filmmakers we’ve proudly championed on S/W – as always if you’re a S/W director and we haven’t included your updates in this article, accept our apologies and drop us an email.

WATCH NOW

The latest films and TV series from Alums

• The Swarm by Just Phillipot – A film we’ve been waiting on for a while, depending on where you are in the world you can now watch Phillipot’s follow-up to the outstanding short Acide on Netflix. The story of a single mother raising locusts as a high-protein crop, The Swarm was picked up the streaming giants after playing Critics Week at Cannes 2020.

• We are Lady Parts by Nida Manzoor – Streaming on Peacock in the US and All4 in the UK, Manzoor’s excellent six-part series, focused on a Muslim female punk band (called Lady Parts), is one you should certainly add to your ‘to watch’ list. Brimming with the same energy and spirit Manzoor showcased in her 2014 short 7.2, Lady Parts started life as a short film made for Channel 4’s Comedy Blaps.
• Fully Realized Humans by Joshua Leonard – Although we only featured Leonard once on our site (as director), back in 2013 with The Youth in Us, we’re closely followed his career ever since. Returning to the director’s chair for only the fifth time, this tale of a couple facing an existential crisis with the soon arrival of their first child is available to rent on Amazon & Vimeo in the States.
• Summer Camp Island by Julia Pott – It’s been 10-years since we first featured Julia Pott on S/W, with Howard, and in that time we’ve seen her create a number of other shorts, voice a character in Don Hertzfeldt’s World of Tomorrow series, write for the revered Adventure Time and launch her own knock-out kids show Summer Camp Island. Now in its fourth season, the show follows the exploits of the visitors at a magical summer camp and is good fun for young and old.
• Surge by Aneil Karia – this debut feature from twice featured filmmaker Karia (BEAT, Work) feels like one we’ve been discussing from some time now, but we’re got good news for audiences in the UK & US. For those of you in the UK reading this, Surge is now available on Netflix, while in the US its hits theatre screens from Sept 24th
• The Voyeurs by Michael Mohan – For anyone who’s seen Mohan’s 2015 award-winning short Pink Grapefruit, the fact that his recent feature has been described as an erotic thriller about a couple who become fascinated with another pair’s sex life, shouldn’t come as a huge surprise. Following similar themes as his SXSW short, The Voyeurs is available to watch on Amazon Prime now

In Development

Development news from our previously featured filmmakers

• Cast named for Nexus Studios Netflix anthology Our House – featuring a host of names recognisable to short film fans in the role of director – Emma de Swaef & Marc James Roels (Oh Willy…), Niki Lindroth von Bahr (The Burden) and Paloma Baeza (Poles Apart) – Matthew Goode, Helena Bonham-Carter, Miranda Richardson, Susan Wokoma Among have been named among the cast of upcoming animation series Our House. Described as a dark comedy, which is currently in production with the support of Netflix, on the Nexus site, the series will be created in stop-motion.
• Trailer for Dan Ojari & Mikey Please’s Robin Robin – another studio creating content for Netflix here, S/W alums Ojari (Slow Derek) and Mikey Please (The Eagleman Stag, Marilyn Miller) are working with Aardman Animation to create a ‘future Christmas classic’ for the streaming platform. The trailer only allows the briefest of glimpses of what to expect from this one-off special currently set for release on Nov. 24th, but it’s an enticing peek into what looks it could become a real family favourite. 

Miscellaneous

Deals, festival news, accolades and more – this is the news from our alums that doesn’t fit into the above categories.

• Rob Savage’s new feature Dashcam hits the festival circuit – Having recently played TIFF (on Sept 12th), details of Savage’s highly anticipated follow-up to Host have finally been announced and it doesn’t sound like fans of the director’s work will be disappointed, with critics describing it as “confounding, challenging, and insanely fun” and stating that “few films this year will be as naturally terrifying or stressful as this one”.
• New Jonathan Entwistle series Hello Tomorrow! picked up by Apple TV+ – With his breakout hit The End of the F***ing World still reverberating around our heads, Entwistle has been named as director for the series Hello Tomorrow!, which has been acquired by Apple TV+. Centred around a group of travelling salesmen hawking lunar timeshares, the 10-episode half-hour dramedy will star Billy Cudrup in a lead role
• Justice Jamal Jones named Sundance Ignite x Adobe Fellow – Recently featured on our site with standout short film How To Raise a Black Boy we were excited to see the name of Justice Jamal Jones in this mentorship programme mentorship from Sundance and Adobe. The filmmaker is now working on developing their first feature Crossroad blues

A collection of me turning into random objects. pic.twitter.com/ValPdPNJIj

— Kevin Parry (@kevinbparry) July 13, 2021

• Kevin Parry goes viral with video experiments – If you’ve seen a man, dressed all in yellow, “magically” turn into a banana on social media, then you’ve more than likely already seen Kevin Parry’s video trickery. Familiar to S/W audiences through 2012 pick The Arctic Circle, Parry’s compilation ‘a collection of me turning into random things’ has racked up views over 17m views on Twitter so far.
• Jonas Carpignano wins Cannes Directors’ Fortnight Award – Featured on our site back in 2018 with short film A Ciambra, Italian director Jonas Carpignano added another trophy to his collection by scooping the Europa Cinemas Cannes Label prize for best European film at the 2021 festival.
• S/W directors added to Academy members list – The Academy added 395 members to their ranks in 2021 and S/W alums Réka Bucsi (Symphony no. 42, Solar Walk), Jeanette Jeanenne (Trusts & Estates), Erick Oh (Heart, How to Eat Your Apple, Pig: The Dam Keeper Poems, Way Home) & Tomer Shushan (White Eye) were among them.